Love and Duels in Full Bloom
by The Digger
Summary: GDS: the most famous all-girls duel academy in the world, and the new home of Yuna Yozora, a timid young duelist who's taken her first steps into a new life. Warning: lots of yuri ahead! Mostly OCs.
1. First Love

**Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!**

 _"_ _Greetings, Yuna Yozora, and congratulations! If you're watching this message, it means that you have been accepted into the Leo Girl's Duel Academy._

 _"_ _Better known by many as the 'Girl's Duel School,' or 'GDS', this all-girl's academy is the finest in all the world, dedicated to training aspiring young duelists to be the next great idols and champions of Duel Monsters. We promote a healthy, friendly environment for girls of the Junior and Senior dueling divisions to live among, and supply the latest and greatest of cards, so that the possibilities of your deck are truly endless. Our dueling arenas are also powered by top of the line Real Solid Vision technology, to truly bring those decks to life. With the best in Real Solid Vision, we also have the best in physical training and facilities, so that you can be at your best in mind and body in the dueling arena…."_

Yuna paused the message, as she sat back in her seat with a sigh. For the past few hours, she had been riding the train to her new school, and had been waiting in both anticipation and anxiety as she knew the famous, prestigious academy known as GDS was drawing closer and closer.

She had no idea how she was going to do well at this academy; she wasn't at all an extraordinary duelist, using mostly old cards considered today to be obsolete, she didn't have the kind of courage or confidence she had seen in many duelists, both on and off the pro circuit displayed, she'd never even used a duel disk before, having only played the game on a table-top with her friends at school.

The brand new pink tablet-like device she held was a gift from her parents when they first found out she'd been accepted to GDS, which thankfully gave her plenty to pass the time until her arrival.

When she had her academy registered to her new disk, she had been sent a sort of orientation message telling her all about GDS, and though she had remembered everything it had told her the first time, Yuna couldn't help but watch the message again and again: Not only did it get her more excited for the moment when she would finally step foot into a new school and a new world to her, but because the woman speaking, for whatever reason, intrigued her.

She was a beautiful young woman with short royal blue hair and brilliant green eyes. She wore a vividly blue kimono with a bright red obi, and a duel disk under the long sleeve of her kimono. Yuna was entranced by her elegant speech, her kind, friendly voice, and… something else she couldn't put a finger on. Perhaps… a desire to be like her?

She put aside her new duel disk for a moment as she checked her watch; she was estimated to be at GDS at around 2:00pm, and her watch read 1:26.

"Guess I should get ready…" She said to herself nervously. She checked her bag to make sure she didn't leave anything behind when she reached her destination, then looked at herself in a mirror to make sure she was as presentable as possible.

A pair of deep blue eyes looked back at Yuna as she checked her shoulder-length pink hair, adjusting her bangs so that one light blue streak bordered the right part in her hair. She practiced a confident smile, but only a child-like girl grinning right back at her in the mirror. Yuna heaved another sigh, feeling like, despite recently turning 15, she was too young to be in the Senior Class at GDS.

When she had combed her hair just the way she liked it, she returned to her duel disk, and continued the video containing her acceptance message:

 _"_ _...Help will always be given at GDS to those who ask for it, because our academy supplies the theory and practice to open the door to limitless possible dueling tactics, and our staff is host to some of the most welcoming, and skilled duelists around the world._

 _"_ _Our goal while you call GDS home is to provide a comfortable, welcoming environment where you can grow and make friends, to supply you with the knowledge and the tools you need to be a great duelist, and to nurture and train you to be the best that you can be, both in and out of the dueling arena."_

Yuna's excitement piqued as she could see the lush, gorgeous hilltop academy just ahead of her. She gathered up her belongings, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and stepped out of her compartment as she felt the train begin to slow down, ready to step out onto the platform, and into a new chapter in her life.

 _"_ _My name is Kazumi Yuunagi, and I welcome you, Yuna Yozora, to GDS."_

 **-Love and Duels in Full Bloom-**

 **-First Love-**

When she left the station, it was to find that the academy was a lot further away than Yuna had imagined. Though at first glance it was just a simple walk up hill, that hill was further away, and much larger than it appeared from the window of the train.

But whether it was right in front of her or halfway around the world, Yuna didn't care; the moment she left the train station, she had felt more invigorated than ever, like she could take on the entire world.

Leaving the station, Yuna came into a pleasant, historical town that made her feel as if she'd stepped back in time. Aside from cars on the roads, there seemed to be little traces of modern technology here, the stone and brick buildings around her clearly built hundreds of years ago.

As she explored her new surroundings, Yuna noticed that there were two large hills on either side of town, each one hosting its own academy, and as she walked down the cobblestone streets, she glanced back and forth between each one, curious which of these two was going to be her new home.

Yuna looked back to her duel disk, searching through the acceptance message in hopes of finding a map that could lead her to the right academy, but no such luck; included was a map of the campus itself, but none detailing where it was from her current location in this town…

"Oh, hey, are you a duelist?"

Yuna jumped as she looked up at the sudden voice, her disk leaping out of her hands.

"Whoa, there!" A girl chuckled as she caught the duel disk in mid-air, before returning it to Yuna. "Be careful, okay?"

"Oh, er… r-right, sorry." Yuna muttered awkwardly.

"No problem. So, what's your…" The girl broke off in mid-sentence, examining Yuna interestedly. "Hey, wait, you're the transfer student, aren't you?" She asked, looking Yuna straight in the eyes.

Speaking of eyes, Yuna was surprised not to have noticed before, this girl's eyes were very… interesting; the left one purple, while the right was green. To Yuna, these seemed almost like they were the eyes of a champion. The rest of this girl gave off a sense of confidence as well. Her hair was dark blue, parted into three sections in the front, while the back was jet black, and tied back into a ponytail. She wore a black shirt with a yellow kanji '5' on the chest, with a blue jacket overtop, and athletic dark pants boasting a bright gold strip down either leg.

"My name's Akira; Akira Yushida." The odd-eyed girl introduced herself. "I'm a 3rd year at GDS. What's your name?"

"A-ah, Yuna." Yuna replied, wishing she could speak in the same confident voice Akira used. "Y-Yuna Yozora. Uh, could you tell me which way it is to GDS? I'm… a little lost, so…" She trailed off uncomfortably, feeling really feeble.

"Yeah, it's right that way." Akira grinned, pointing to the hill east of where they stood. "Sorry, we don't get very many transfer students, so it's easy to forget that not everyone knows which one's GDS." She flinched as her own duel disk buzzed from her pocket. "I would walk with you to the campus, but I've got some things I need to take care of. Sorry. Can you find your way alright?"

"Yeah, thank you so much!" Yuna nodded, smiling as she hurried towards the academy to the east. There, she stopped short of a large metal gate, which swung open as she approached, as if to welcome her home.

From here, she only knew where to go by the dirt pathway leading out of the train station, and so she set out on the path, which wove through a thick forest, the crimson trees that lined the road branching out above her like a naturally-formed tunnel.

Yuna breathed in as she felt a soft, cool breeze blow past her, and watched as bright red leaves rustled across the path along her walk. She smiled as she tried to imagine her new school; if just the walk here held such beautiful sights, what could GDS itself possibly have to offer?

After walking for several minutes, Yuna noticed that the path had split off into two directions. Despite this, she knew the right path, which moved further uphill, was the right way; the left path wove noticeably downwards in the distance, leading Yuna to wonder what could possibly be that way.

At last, she arrived at GDS, and the dirt path had become a smoothly crafted brick road leading into what, at first, seemed like another, smaller antique town. She grinned as she saw all the other girls walking by her, each wearing the school's deep blue uniform; Yuna, who was currently wearing the uniform from her previous school, felt very out of place being dressed so differently.

 _"_ _Everyone's starring….."_ Yuna swallowed nervously, trying not to stare back at the other people watching her. Not only was she feeling out of place, but clearly, she stood out heavily.

Eager to turn her attention away from the prying eyes around her, Yuna consulted the acceptance letter on her duel disk once more, and found that she was supposed to complete her student registration at the faculty office.

* * *

Elsewhere, the news of the latest addition to GDS was buzzing around campus; the academy hadn't seen a transfer student in a very long time, so many were eager to learn more about who this new duelist could be.

"What kind of girl do you think she could be?" One was musing, with devious thoughts on her mind during study hall. "I hope she's cute~!"

"I wonder what kind of deck she has." Another was speculating eagerly.

Yet another was simply kicking back, grinning excitedly, knowing exactly who her new classmate was going to be. "She's coming tonight, Hotaru! Aren't you excited?"

"You miss her, huh Reiko? Yes, I'm excited, but please try to keep it down."

"You kiddin'? You might have only met us recently, Hotaru, but Yuna and I have been the best of friends since we were in diapers." Reiko stood up proudly, one foot up on her chair. "Yeah, it's only been a few months since we moved to GDS, but that's a few months too many to be away from my best friend! I'm so happy to have her back, I could sing!"

"Ahem!" The teacher cleared her throat sharply from her desk, silencing Reiko and the rest of the class instantly. "Ms. Ryugamine? If you're in the mood for singing, may I suggest you join the choir?" She allowed the rest of study hall a moment to laugh as Reiko sank awkwardly back into her seat. "In the meantime, please quiet down."

"S-sorry…" Reiko mumbled awkwardly.

"You're so hopeless…" Hotaru sighed.

* * *

"I feel so hopeless…" Yuna sighed, slumping back against a tree as she took a break from navigating the grounds of GDS. She was supposed to meet up with the head of her dorm after finalizing her student registration, but she ended up getting very lost in the academy's landscape; not only was she unable to find the right building out of the town that was GDS, but she wasn't even on the main campus anymore.

She had no idea how she managed this, but Yuna somehow had found herself lost in the woods, without any idea how to get back to the main campus, much less find her dorm. She checked the map on her duel disk, but little good a map did when she was stuck in the woods, which surrounded the entire academy grounds.

Yuna's thoughts were derailed as she heard a rustling nearby. In the corner of her eye, she saw movement; someone else was navigating the forest as well. Only, as Yuna observed, this one seemed to know exactly where she was going. So, eager for help, Yuna tailed her intently.

Unlike the other girls of GDS, this person wore a white kimono emblazoned with bright red autumn leaves, her obi gold with matching red autumn leaves. She had short, vivid blue hair, and she carried a wooden box under one arm, while the other carried what looked like a canvas.

 _"_ _I wonder where she's going?"_ Yuna wondered, feeling like she was only following this girl even deeper into the woods. _"Or, what she's doing…"_

The kimono girl led Yuna into a small clearing, broken by a single tree standing taller than those around it, and, after finding the right place to sit, she unpacked the wooden box, which held an ink stone that bore four shallow wells, a number of different colored ink sticks, and a small bottle of water.

Yuna watched as the kimono girl poured a small amount of water into each of the four wells, and ground a different color ink for each one. Then, she produced a case of brushes from the box, and began painting an outline of the trees in black with a thin brush.

She stopped her work, and turned her head, grinning. She knew she was being watched, and motioned for Yuna to come join her as she returned to her work.

"Did you come out here to admire the autumn scenery as well?" She asked, her tone almost playful.

"Actually… I'm kind of lost." Yuna admitted sheepishly. "Do you know how to get back to the Academy from here?"

"Yes, but there's no need to be impatient." The blue-haired girl smiled. "Please, join me. It's been a long time since I've worked in the company of others."

Yuna kept her eyes on the canvas as the kimono girl continued to paint. Once she had finished making a simple outline of the woods, she replaced her brush with a clean one that she loaded with red ink, emulating the vivid red of the fall trees around her.

"This scenery is gorgeous, isn't it?" The girl said with a smile.

"It is." Yuna nodded.

"I've returned to exact spot twice before," The artist explained as she picked up a third brush, this one dipped into blue ink. "And each time I returned, I've found a new world to capture on my canvas; at the beginning of the year, I found a lush, green forest, with cherry trees vividly in full bloom, and when I returned, it was to find a lively gathering for the creatures of the wild to make their homes. Now, I look upon a land painted with the most brilliant of reds that seeks to settle down as it prepares for the coming winter."

Yuna watched as the artist, with quick and precise strokes of her brush, painted a group of little blue birds, capturing the ones that were gathering on the real trees' branches, adding a sense of contrast to the bright crimson leaves around them.

"What sort of land do you think I will find the next time I return?" The artist concluded as she put the finishing details on her painting. "One that's calm, silent, and sparse? Or, a snow-covered wonderland?" She looked up at Yuna. "Or, maybe one that I'd never even imagined?"

Yuna gasped as she looked into the eyes of the painter, recognizing her almost instantly: She had short blue hair, brilliant green eyes, and a matured, yet young face displaying kind elegance. This was the same woman in her academy acceptance message.

When Yuna was silent for a long period of time, she paused herself, coming to a realization, "Oh my, I've been so rude! I haven't even given you my name yet." She set down her brush, stood, and bowed politely. "My name is Kazumi Yuunagi. I'm very pleased to meet you, Ms…?"

"Uh, Y-Yuna." Yuna gave her own name. "Yuna Yozora."

"Ah." Kazumi smiled. "So you're our new transfer student, then." Yuna blushed as Kazumi drew closer to her, lightly caressing her cheek. "Welcome to your new home, Yuna. What do you think of it so far?"

"Ah…" Yuna muttered, lost for words. Her heart was hammering as Kazumi wrapped her arms around her shoulders, drawing herself even closer. "I-I really…" She fought to look away from Kazumi's gaze, feeling immobilized by simply making eye contact with her….

"Are you alright?" Kazumi asked, amused as she broke her physical contact with Yuna. "I'm sorry if I came off as… overly affectionate."

"I-it's alright..." Yuna smiled sheepishly. "Er, I was just… surprised, is all…" She backed away a step or two from Kazumi, though at the same time feeling a little guilty for doing so. Kazumi grinned, amused and adoring of the new transfer student.

"Um…" Yuna fidgeted. "I've been searching for the dorms. Could you please help me?"

"Absolutely." Kazumi nodded.

She gathered up her art supplies, and led Yuna out of the woods, back into the antique academy. Yuna could tell by the way she navigated the woods, that Kazumi had many years to accustom herself to the whole of GDS, undoubtedly knowing the entire academy's layout by heart.

"This is the way that you want to go." Kazumi spoke up as she led Yuna to the opposite end of the main school grounds, leading back into the woods. "Remember: It's past the church down this road." She indicated the dirt path that branched off from the brick road, passed a handsome marble-white church with a large, high bell tower that clearly towered over every other building on campus.

"There's no shame in being lost, you know." Kazumi grinned over her shoulder at Yuna as they walked back into the woods. "I remember when I first came to this academy, I was often late -sometimes even outright missing classes- and missing curfew regularly because I couldn't figure out where anything was around this school." She chuckled at such memories. "Oh, how mad the housemother would get…"

Yuna smiled as Kazumi led her to the dorm, all the while telling her stories about her early years at the academy. For a moment, Yuna almost felt as if she belonged perfectly here at this new school, like Kazumi was an old friend that she was conversing with.

A short walk through the woods later, Yuna spotted a gorgeous three-story white building with a royal blue roof that stood out beautifully among the bright red foliage. Surrounding the dormitory was a ten-foot concrete barrier, and, to Yuna's alarm, a metal gate that was already sliding shut.

"Oh no!" She squeaked, noticing only now that the sky was dyed a deep orange, the sun setting, and curfew very fast approaching.

"We'll make it." Kazumi smirked. With shocking agility, she dashed towards the slowly closing gate, Yuna struggling to keep up, and in a smooth motion, moved through the ever-closing gap.

Yuna, however, was not quite so lucky. Although she kept up with Kazumi relatively well, she almost crashed headlong into the gate as it slammed shut. She sighed as she backed away from the gate, feeling her day turning sour pretty quickly.

"Don't close just yet…!" Yuna heard a voice shout behind her. She turned around to see a tomboyish girl about her age sprinting to the dorm at full speed. She had a face that seemed upbeat almost all the time, with determined dark blue eyes, and identical dark blue hair in a short ponytail. A coat of sweat was visible in her face, obviously having been running for quite a long distance. "Just a few more minutes…!"

She came to a grinding halt as she realized that she was far too late. "Damn! Hate it when I get locked out…" She sighed, almost sounding like this was a minor inconvenience at the worst. "Guess I won't have to go the long, hard night alone though, eh?" She said teasingly to Yuna.

Yuna moaned, depressed. She knew this girl was only joking, but that somehow didn't make her feel any better…

"Say, I don't think I've ever seen you around here before." The tomboy commented. "Are you… Hey, wait! No way…! Yuna?!"

Yuna twirled around at the call of her name. She thought this tomboy looked familiar, but now, it was plain as day: "Reiko!" She said happily, jumping out to grab her long time best friend in a hug.

"Friend of yours?" Kazumi asked with a grin.

"Friend of yours?" Reiko returned, nodding to Kazumi.

"Er, yeah…" Yuna replied to both girls at once. "Uh, what do we do now that we're locked out, though?"

"I'll get the housemother." Kazumi said simply, about to turn to the door. "She'll understand, since…"

"Better idea." Reiko smirked. She took her school bag off her back, and hurled it over the gate, Kazumi catching it, but looking to Reiko curiously. Then, Reiko took a running jump, and climbed up the gate, sitting on top of it as she turned to Yuna expectedly.

"C'mon, it's no trouble, long as we get over before anyone notices that we're out here." Reiko called, offering a hand to help Yuna over.

Yuna, giving in, jumped to grab Reiko's hand. "Won't we be in serious trouble though?" She said, highly concerned.

"Don't worry!" Reiko assured her. "What the housemother doesn't know, won't hurt her!"

"And, what does the dorm mother not know, may I ask?"

Yuna's hand slipped out of Reiko's grip as her heart stopped, seeing what was unmistakably the housemother standing right outside the dormitory entrance with her arms crossed seriously, clearly disapproving of Reiko's actions.

* * *

 _"_ _It's not even my first day, and I'm already in big trouble with the housemother!"_ Yuna felt like crying, she was so embarrassed about her current situation. She and Reiko were currently standing before the housemother's desk as she watched them glaringly.

"Yuna Yozora," She spoke. "I understand that you are a new student, and that you may have a difficult time navigating our school's grounds, but I want you to understand that there's a curfew in place for all students, and that you're to be on the inside of the gate not a second later than 7:00pm. I don't want to have to have this conversation with you again. Understood?"

"Y-yes ma'am!" Yuna squeaked.

"And Reiko Ryugamine," The housemother continued. "This is not the first time I've caught you missing curfew, nor is it the first time I've caught you jumping the gate."

"It is the first time that I'm late for a good reason, though…" Reiko said, but both she and Yuna flinched as the housemother slapped a ruler against her desk, making a loud, sharp snap.

"Regardless of your reasoning, you know better than to miss curfew better than anybody else living under my roof." She retorted. "Now, first thing tomorrow morning, I want you and Ms. Yozora to scrub the entire church from top to bottom, until…"

"Pardon the intrusion, Mother Tenma." Everyone had their eyes on the door as Kazumi intervened on the conversation. "I'm sorry to have disrupted your disciplinary discussion, but Ms. Ryugamine and Ms. Yozora are only late because of my actions. I required their assistance in a matter of the upmost importance, and so I request that I take any and all blame for their tardiness."

Mother Tenma appeared deeply annoyed by Kazumi's interruption, but despite that, she relented. "Very well." She sighed. "You two are dismissed." Reiko and Yuna sighed with relief as they began to walk away, but winced as Mother Tenma slapped the side of her desk with her ruler again.

"However!" She spoke up. "I do not wish to repeat this discussion. If this happens again, I will not be as merciful, even if Ms. Yuunagi is here to bail you out. Understood?"

"Yes, Mother Tenma!" Yuna and Reiko said in unison, bowing together before scurrying out of the housemother's office.

"Thank you, Kazumi." Yuna sighed a deep relief.

"Not at all, Yuna." Kazumi smiled lightly. She bent down slightly to land a kiss on Yuna's cheek, making the small girl blush bright red. Kazumi giggled at Yuna's reaction. "Now, be sure that you keep out of trouble~!" She said in a mock-stern voice resembling Mother Tenma's. "Senior dorms are on the second floor, by the way."

Reiko just watched Kazumi in perplexion as she walked away, not sure what to make of her. "So… something going on with her that I should know about?" She smirked, nudging Yuna's shoulder teasingly.

"Eh?!" Yuna blushed even more brightly. "N-no! I- we just met earlier today." She retold her encounter to Reiko as the two old friends ascended the stairs to the Senior rooms.

"Sounds like you've had quite a first day." Reiko said. "What room are you in? I might pay you a visit tonight~!"

Yuna checked her registry information on her duel disk, which stated she was assigned to: "Room 109."

As Reiko gripped the knob to her own room, she looked up to see the number 109 on the door. "Hey, how 'bout that?!" She laughed. "Y'know, Hotaru said something about me getting a new roommate soon…"

When she looked around her new room, Yuna could easily identify the bed in the back corner as Reiko's; cards had been strewn across the bed lazily, with only a single blanket thrown back on top. Yuna had never known Reiko to be the most tidy of individuals, and clearly GDS's dainty environment hadn't changed that about her whatsoever.

She was however pleased to see that her baggage had already been brought here, set next to the neatly-made, clearly unused bed.

"So, before you start unpacking," Reiko smirked as she closed the door, Yuna's heart leaping as she locked it with a low 'click'. "I think there's something we need to take care of." Reiko's smirk turned much wilder as she advanced on Yuna.

"Eh?" Yuna gasped. "R-Reiko? What are you…?"

"C'mere, you!" Reiko cackled as she pounced Yuna with devious intentions, wrestling her onto her new bed.

"Reiko! S-stop it!" Yuna squealed as she tried to resist her friend's actions. "What're you… Wha-ha-ha-ha…! St-stop!" She broke into involuntary laughter as Reiko began tickling her playfully.

"Let's get you out of those clothes first~!" Reiko said deviously, taking advantage of Yuna's moment of vulnerability to strip off her shirt and unbutton her skirt. Before Yuna could resist her again, Reiko went straight for her sides, and tickled her back into submission.

"N-no fai- hahahaa!" Yuna was gasping for breath as she was put into another bout of laughter, giving Reiko enough time to take off her skirt.

"Now…" Reiko continued enthusiastically, producing a long white measuring tape. "Let's get the measurements for your uniform."

"Eh?" Yuna snapped back to reality at these words. She'd been expecting something naughty with Reiko's wild actions...

"What?" Reiko shrugged. "We've gotta get your uniform measurements tonight if you wanna get your uniform in time for classes."

"R-Reiko! If that's all you were trying to do, you should have just said so!" she flustered, her face a very deep shade of pink.

"And what fun would that've been?" Reiko laughed. She had always taken amusement in embarrassing Yuna. "Yuna, you're always so cute when you get flustered!"

"Geez, Reiko…!" Yuna pouted as she stood, raising her arms for Reiko to take her measurements.

Already, she could tell that she was in for a very interesting school year.

 **To Be Continued….**

* * *

 **I wasn't sure about rebooting this series at first, but after finding so much enjoyment in reimagining Yuna's arrival at GDS and envisioning the academy through her eyes, I decided to start over fresh, and with a much more clear vision this time around, I hope to have more fun times ahead in this run.**

 **I've always enjoyed all-girl Yuri school anime, especially Strawberry Panic, and I've wanted to make one set in the GX universe for a long time, but after Arc-V came out, I saw so many more creative possibilities, and here we go!**

 **Oh, and in case anyone's wondering, this series is meant to take place after the events of Arc-V, so be prepared to see a few familiar faces as time goes by ;D**

 **Next time, Yuna's first day of classes at GDS will take place, and she'll learn firsthand the art of the Action Duel!**

 **See you then! And Happy Valentine's Day!**


	2. Second Test

"Yuna?"

Yuna awoke at the sound of her name, but her eyes remained firmly closed. She groaned, still feeling very drowsy as she rolled over. She shivered as a cool breeze blew past her, and tried to pull her sheets back over herself for warmth. However, as her hand groped around for the edge of her blanket, there was nothing to be found.

"Yuna~?"

Now she started opening her eyes, just enough to find her blanket and get comfortable again. Strange, she didn't remember her bed being so green….

Eyes still hurting from the brightness of the light, she looked for the light switch, only to come to the realization that she was not in her own room.

At such a realization, Yuna's eyes snapped open and she sat bolt upright. She had been sleeping right in the middle of the forest surrounding the GDS campus. She jumped to her feet, looking for any signs of another student, anyone who could help guide her back to the school. That was right when she was approached by a familiar face.

"There you are, Yuna." It was Kazumi, dressed today in the royal blue kimono that she wore in Yuna's acceptance video. "I've been looking for you, you know."

"You have?" Yuna blinked. "W-what for?"

"I want to show you around your new home, of course." Kazumi chuckled lightly. "But first, there are some things I must take care of." She wrapped her hands around Yuna's shoulders, and pulling herself in very close.

Just then, Yuna felt the warmth of Kazumi's hands against her bare skin. At first, she blushed, thinking that she was reaching under her clothes, but then Yuna squealed at the realization that she was currently naked! She jumped back to cover her bare body, but as she did, it was to realize that she had been dressed in a bright pink kimono with a purple obi, both decorated with white floral patterns.

"Someone as cute as you needs clothing equally adorable." Kazumi smiled as she embraced Yuna again. "And now, with that out of the way…" Her face drew closer to Yuna's, lips clearly poised to kiss. Yuna's heart was hammering, embarrassed at the very idea….

"Yuna? Yuna…" Kazumi said, pausing her actions. "It's time to get up!"

Yuna blinked at her. "What?" She said blankly.

* * *

"I said it's time to get up, Yuna!"

Yuna moaned drowsily as she opened her eyes; not objecting to the interruption of her dream, but uncomfortable with having been woken up at what felt like a very early time of day.

"What time is it?" She asked groggily, heaving a yawn.

"It's 7:46. Come on, get up, Yuna. You too, Reiko."

As she started to become more aware of her surroundings, Yuna looked up from her bed to see a girl her age with long, wavy golden hair down passed her chest, and amethyst eyes that right now were frowning impatiently at her friend.

"Hotaru!" Yuna smiled. "It's good to see you again. I just arrived yesterday, and I'm sorry I didn't meet you then, but I just had a really hectic day yesterday, and…" With every word, she spoke faster and more anxiously.

"Yuna, relax." Hotaru sighed. "We can catch up over breakfast." She frowned down at her. "Right as soon as you two get out of bed."

Yuna turned to look over at Reiko's bed, only to find herself looking at the wall. For the second time that morning, she realized that she was not in her own bed. Then where was Reiko…?

"Oh, I don't mind." Reiko chuckled. "I could cuddle like this all morning."

"Eh?!" Yuna blushed as full awareness came to her. She was currently in Reiko's bed, embracing the tomboy in a big, tight bear hug.

"'A really hectic day yesterday,' huh?" Hotaru raised her eyebrow at the two. "Do I want to know what sort of hectic activities you were caught up in?"

"E-eh!? Hotaru, i-it's not like that!" Yuna squeaked, shaking her head feverishly.

"I see that your sleeping habits haven't changed at all, Yuna." Reiko teased. "Ever since we were little, you'd always wind up finding something to hug onto in your sleep." She hugged onto Yuna. "If you want me to hug onto every night, I would be more than happy to…."

"Okay, cut that out!" Hotaru sighed. "We don't have all day to lay down and snuggle."

"…If you wanna join us, there's plenty of room." Reiko offered.

"REIKO!" Hotaru yelled hotly.

* * *

 **-Love and Duels in Full Bloom-**

 **Second Test**

* * *

"Ah, c'mon, Hotaru! It was only a joke! I didn't mean anything by it!" Reiko insisted some time later as she, Yuna, and Hotaru walked downstairs to breakfast, the latter striding far ahead of the others irritably, her face a bright red.

"I don't think anything you tell her would help." Yuna murmured. Reiko didn't exactly have a way with words…

"Yuna, this way." Hotaru spoke up. At the bottom of the stairs, Hotaru led the group through a pair of opened-up double doors, into what was clearly the dining room; a spacious room with circular and rectangular tables spread all throughout, many of which were lined alongside the many windows across the far wall.

"I-is this where we eat every morning?!" Yuna gasped with sheer delight.

"Yep!" Reiko nodded proudly.

"You can even fill out a form to get your favorite breakfasts or dinners." Hotaru explained. "I think you might get one today, if you haven't already."

She led her friends to a short line, where Yuna's mouth watered as she feasted her eyes on the wide variety of breakfast foods that the cafeteria had to offer: at just a glance, she spotted several kinds of pastries, cereals of countless brands and flavors, numerous muffins and donuts, fruits of every shape, size, and color…

"So hungry…." She drooled as her stomach growled loudly.

"I like a little bit of everything, myself." Reiko grinned, already having filled a plate with about four donuts, an eggwich, an orange, and a cereal box. "See anything you like?"

"I see a little of everything I like, but today, I think I'd really like to have some…" Yuna said, taking one of everything she could reach, but stopped dead in her tracks as she saw that the cafeteria was serving, "Waffles!"

Reiko and Hotaru grinned with amusement as Yuna stacked her plate a foot high with waffles, before stepping out of the line, ready to find a place to sit.

Hotaru brought her friends to her favorite window-side table, and watched with amusement as Yuna loaded her waffles with syrup over a sip of tea; seeing Yuna indulge in the luxuries of the GDS cafeteria almost felt like experiencing it for the first time again herself.

"You know, Yuna." Reiko said as she dug into a donut. "Before your first lessons, there are some things about this school that you should know."

"Like what?" Yuna asked through a mouthful of waffle.

"Ahem!" Hotaru cleared her throat strictly. "For one, you are expected to show ladylike manners at all times. So please, don't talk with your mouth full."

"Sorry…" Yuna said awkwardly after swallowing.

"For another," Hotaru continued, blowing on a piping hot cup of coffee. "GDS is a school that emphasizes the importance of comradery. As a famous student once said: 'Your classmates are your sisters, and you must respect them as such.'"

"Something else you should know about," Reiko chipped in. "Let's see…. how do I put this? There are many girls who take that importance of comradery VERY seriously. On and off the dueling field~." She added with a sultry undertone.

"Indeed..." Hotaru gave Reiko a dirty look as she sipped her coffee. Yuna looked back and forth between Reiko and Hotaru with confusion.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

Hotaru sighed. "I'm sure you'll find out soon enough…" She took another drink of coffee. "But more importantly: Dueling here is very different than how you're used to it, Yuna."

"I know," Yuna nodded. She didn't have her duel disk with her, but she knew that dueling with one was very different than playing the game on a tabletop.

"Not sure you do." Reiko said. "See, in these kinds of duels, you're not just gonna be standing still in one spot on the dueling field; you're going to have a bit more… action demanded of you."

"Oh…" Yuna nodded, but then blinked at her curiously. "Uh?"

After eating breakfast, Yuna was excited to find that her uniform had been delivered. Ever since she'd first learned about GDS, she had always adored the dark blue uniforms iconic to the school; in her eyes, they symbolized courage and maturity, and the idea of wearing it was empowering to her. As she opened the bag left on her bed, she grinned with anticipation, ready to wear the colors of the greatest girls' duel academy in the world!

It only took Yuna a few minutes to change into her new uniform, but she couldn't refrain from standing in front of the mirror and admiring her appearance in GDS's colors for almost an hour.

She stood in a very proud pose to her reflection, donned in a dark blue skirt, a jacket trimmed with an ornate gold along the hem and cuffs over a white blouse, with a red tie tipped with blue. Pinned to the breast of her jacket was a shining badge reading 'GDS' in brilliant, shining gold letters encircled by an angelic feathered wing.

Although she was afraid that the uniform wouldn't suit her, Yuna smiled proudly at her reflection, almost feeling like this was an outfit made just for her. She grabbed her new duel disk, ready to try it on to see what she would look like as a true duelist, but such an idea was cut short as she got a look at the clock.

"Ah!" She squeaked. "I'm going to be late!" She hastily grabbed her bag, and rushed out the door, fearing she would be late for her first day.

* * *

While awaiting homeroom to begin, Classroom 4-A was abuzz with chatter about the news of their newest addition.

"I never even knew GDS actually accepted transfer students." One girl was saying. "I mean, I've lived at this academy since I've first learned how to use a duel disk, and it's never happened before."

"That means she's gotta have an amazing deck, right? Something completely unique from anything the campus store would have to offer…"

"Never mind deck, how about the girl herself? I hope she's super cute~! Betcha anything she's got a flower name."

"Where is she?" Hotaru sighed. "Class is about to start…"

"I think maybe we should have brought Yuna with us," Reiko muttered sheepishly. She sighed too. "She was pretty excited to try on her new uniform. If I know her, she was probably admiring how pretty she looked in it for the past hour or so…"

* * *

Although she remembered her way to the main campus well enough, Yuna was quickly plagued by anxiety when she realized that she had no idea where her homeroom was.

"I could have sworn I had a map yesterday…" She said nervously, searching her duel disk for the map she had of the school campus, feeling so stupid as she failed to find it, no matter how hard she looked. Although, it'd soon dawned on her that, map or no map, she also had no clue where she was going; she didn't know what her homeroom number was, much less where to find it.

So, in the end, Yuna was running blind, trying to find a clue to her homeroom's whereabouts in the small city of a campus. Her anxiety overwhelming her, she barely saw where she was going, and so she tripped, landing head first into someone… and yet, she wasn't hurt at all.

"Whoa, are you okay?"

"I think so…" Yuna replied, her voice muffled as her face was pressed against… She turned scarlet red as her brain caught up with her touch; her face was buried in another girl's breasts! Recognizing this, she jumped back, tripping over herself again, and landing on her behind.

"You sure you're okay?" The girl asked, offering a hand up.

"Not really…" Yuna panted, gladly accepting her hand. "I'm new here, but I have no idea where my homeroom is. Aw, I'm gonna be late to homeroom on my first day…!"

"Oh, YOU'RE the new girl?" the girl said interestedly. "I'd been told that my homeroom's getting a new addition today." She pulled Yuna to her feet. "I'm Alice, by the way. Alice Gollman. What's your name?"

"Uh, Y-Yuna. Yuna Yozora." As she stood back upright, Yuna blushed as she got a better look at Alice: she had long, wavy honey blonde hair down to her waist, and mature face with welcoming hazel eyes. She also wore long black stockings that extended passed her knees, suspended by a garter belt, and her uniform jacket was unzipped, exposing a corset worn over her blouse.

"So…" Alice said. "You want me to show you where our homeroom is?"

"Ah, yes! Please!" Yuna replied, a little louder than she'd intended.

 _"_ _She's beautiful…"_ She thought with a red-faced smile. _"There are so many pretty girls in this school, I actually feel kind of jealous…"_ Though, much to her own embarrassment, Yuna found her eyes gravitated towards Alice's very large bust, which had been pushed up by her corset, accentuating her breasts already far above average size as they jiggled with every step she took.

"Something wrong?" Alice blinked, noticing Yuna's reddened face.

"Ah, n-no, not at all…" Yuna blushed, trying her hardest not to stare at Alice's chest. _"Th-they're huge!"_

"Well, anyways," Alice grinned, aware of where Yuna's eyes were. "You'll wanna head this way, towards Kujaku Hall…"

* * *

"Girls, settle down." The homeroom teacher spoke up, quieting the chatter of room 4-A. "We have a new student joining our class today. Please, give a warm welcome to Yuna Yozora."

"Um… hi…" Yuna waved awkwardly to her new classmates. She tried to think of something else to say, but couldn't produce a single word as she was put on the spot like this, and so the room was drowned in silence.

"Um, I'm not a very good duelist, but I hope that we can all be good friends…" She said nervously, hoping that whatever she was saying wasn't coming off too awkward. A silence followed her introduction, and she wanted to hide…

Then, the classroom erupted into excited, joyful chatter!

"I knew she'd have a flower name!" *****

"Where'd you come from?" One girl asked.

"I'm from Tome Town," Yuna replied sheepishly.

"What duel school did you go to before GDS?" Another girl inquired enthusiastically.

"I went to Tome Junior High before coming here, but I've never been to any actual duel schools, besides the Tome Dueling Club."

"Got a favorite card?" Another girl chimed in energetically. "How about hobbies? Got any boyfriends back home? …Any girlfriends~?"

"My favorite card might be…. Eh?" Yuna blushed at this question. "N-no, no one like that, but uh…"

"Okay, okay, settle down class!" The teacher chuckled. "Now take your seats, and we can begin."

Yuna sat at an empty seat between Reiko and Hotaru, glad to be free of so many questions; pleased though she was to have been welcomed into this class, she was starting to get overwhelmed by the sheer mass of people and their questions.

"Well then, to our newest addition, allow me to introduce myself," The teacher spoke. She wore a black men's suit, the top buttons of her shirt unbuttoned to expose a little cleavage, and the jacket's lapel bore a more ornate twin-winged GDS badge. She had long blond hair held up in a ponytail, so that it reached down to her shoulder blades, and green eyes that, while bearing a business-like tone, struck Yuna as ones that were usually much more playful.

"I am Tammy Gollman, and I'll be your homeroom teacher this year. If you have any problems, or if you have any interest in the After Dark Club, don't hesitate to come and talk to me."

"Thank you, ma'am." Yuna bowed her head politely. "I'll do my best."

"She really just blurted out the After Dark Club right in the middle of class?" Hotaru muttered. Yuna noticed that many of the other students were showing rather embarrassed expressions at the mention of such a club.

"What's that?" She asked.

"Rule #1 of the After Dark Club: you don't talk about the After Dark Club." Reiko stated.

"You don't want to know." Alice whispered from behind Yuna as Ms. Gollman made her morning announcements. "Let's just say it's not for the timid or faint of heart."

"What do you mean?" Yuna blinked. "What is this club?"

"Second rule of the After Dark club: you do NOT talk about the After Dark Club." Alice emphasized.

"Alright…" Yuna sighed, rolling her eyes. She knew that it was best to just drop the subject.

When she had applied to join GDS, Yuna had assumed that classes would comprise mostly of dueling, possibly in the dueling courts that the academy had frequently and proudly displayed in their advertising. However, she was surprised to find that not once today did she ever need to take out her duel disk, at least not for any actual duels; instead, almost all of her classes after homeroom comprised of lectures detailing things such as the intricacies of Duel Monsters, classes on deck building theory, and lessons on card strategies.

"Ugh, I hate Mondays." Reiko groaned as she clutched her aching head while Ms. Gollman constantly talked of the different applications for Quick-Play Spells. "Sorry to give you such a bad first impression of GDS, Yuna." She whispered teasingly.

"What do you mean? This isn't so bad." Yuna said, listening to the lecture with great interest. She was only able to follow parts of what was being said, but what she did understand and follow, she found quite fascinating; she didn't know Quick-Play Spells had such a vast difference from Normal Spells, much less that they could be used from the hand during the Battle Phase.

"Like them or not Reiko, they're important." Hotaru stated as she took notes on the subject matter being lectured. "You need to have knowledge if you're going to put it into motion in the duel arena."

"Ugh, whatever." Reiko rolled her eyes. "I'm better with actual duels than I am writing papers on them." She turned to look out the window to see a gym class running laps outside. "Wish I could be with them, instead of being stuck here…"

As she began daydreaming about more exciting academy activities, Reiko was snapped out of her fantasy as a piece of chalk shot across the classroom, hitting her square in the forehead, and causing her to stagger back in her chair.

"If you would prefer something a bit more physical, Ms. Ryugamine," Ms. Gollman spoke up. "Mrs. Yuki would like for the floor of the Center Court to have a fresh polishing."

When she got back upright in her chair, Reiko sank into it, already overwhelmed by the very idea of polishing the enormity of GDS's largest and most proudly showcased dueling court.

"I'm good…" She muttered.

"That's what I thought." Ms. Gollman smirked. "Now," She addressed the class. "You're to write me a summary on the functions and applications of Quick-Play Spells, due tomorrow. And, Ms. Yozora?"

"Y-yes?" Yuna blinked.

"Don't let Ms. Ryugamine just copy your homework." Ms. Gollman grinned playfully, earning a chorus of laughter from the class.

* * *

"I don't know what she meant by that." Reiko shrugged as class dismissed, speaking in a manner that Yuna could tell was clearly feigning ignorance.

"Yeah, because you've never copied homework off of anyone before, is that right?" Hotaru said sarcastically.

"Yeah, that IS right, thank you very much!" Reiko barked indignantly.

Yuna giggled lightly as her friends bantered. It had felt like so long since she'd been around Reiko's energetic attitude, or Hotaru's no-nonsense, yet confident outlook. She had worked so hard to finally make it to this school, faced more hardship than she had originally anticipated to be here with her friends, to wear the dark blue and gold of GDS, to be in an environment where friends could be around any corner. But now, she was finally hear, and she was happier now than she had been in a very long time.

Yuna and her friends now sat down for study hall, their final period of the day, run by Mrs. Yuki, a blonde woman who bore a more mature aura about her than Tammy, who wore a classy outfit with a long blue coat that Yuna thought could be described as 'regal.' She kindly welcomed Yuna and briefly introduced herself before everyone took their seats.

"Mind if I join you?" Alice requested as she sat just behind the group.

"Be our guest." Hotaru said invitingly.

Yuna felt a distinct satisfaction as Alice sat to talk with her: Within her first day at this new school, she had already made friends with Kazumi, one of the most important students at this school, and now Alice. She wondered if all girls at this school were as approachable as these two.

"Ugh, I don't know about you, but I'd really rather be anywhere but study hall today." Reiko sighed, very bored.

Yuna looked around the room to see that most of the room at large shared Reiko's sentiment; while there were some girls that were using their free time to tinker with their decks, catch up on homework, or else study from a book, many others were trying their best to keep themselves from getting too bored.

"You say this every week on Monday." Hotaru sighed back. "Honestly, Reiko, you just have more energy than you even know what to do with."

"I can't help it!" Reiko groaned. "When a school's set to teach you Action Duels, you'd assume that you'll see a lot more action!"

"Action Duel?" Yuna asked, in a whispering tone.

"You really haven't had an Action Duel before?!" Alice said in disbelief. Yuna shook her head. "Well, Reiko, it looks like you're about to see a bit more action today, after all." She stood with her hand raised. "Mrs. Yuki? With your permission, may I take Yuna to the dueling courts for a practice duel? She has yet to take part in an Action Duel, and I would like to help her get caught up to speed."

"You may go." Mrs. Yuki nodded. "Duel Court #4 is now open for use."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Alice led Yuna and her friends out of the Kujaku Hall, and towards another building that had a more modern sort of appearance and structure that stood out to Yuna more than the other locations on campus.

Once inside, she gasped as she caught a simple look at the lobby: Unlike the rest of the school that she'd seen so far, this building from the moment she stepped through the door was far more modern and high-tech, with large holographic letters 'GDS' illuminated in the center, and all around her, duelists were chatting amongst themselves, doing warm-up stretches, buying refreshments, and preparing their decks for their next duels.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Alice said proudly. "GDS's gym is a state of the art marvel in dueling technological achievement for the Leo Corporation, prepared to train everyone who walks through its doors to be at their best for any Action Duel."

"So, how do you do Action Duel?" asked Yuna, finding herself only more confused, as Alice led her past the front counter, handing the lady at the front desk a ticket on her way by. She had seen Action Duels on TV before, but couldn't really follow them.

"It's something you can't truly understand through words alone," Hotaru said. "But it's a more advanced dueling format; one that demands physical fitness."

Yuna glanced into one of the rooms lining the corridor to see a class in session; inside, each student was training with a dumbbell in a method mirroring the motion commonly performed by duelists when drawing a card from their duel disks.

"Uh, I think we should just have a regular duel first." Yuna suggested nervously. "I don't think I could do an Action Duel right now."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that." Yuna stopped dead in her tracks as whoever spoke placed a hand on her shoulder, and she looked around to see Kazumi smiling down at her.

"Ah, K-Kazumi?" Yuna gasped.

"You look lovely in your new uniform~." Kazumi said flirtatiously. "Although…" She turned Yuna around. "Your tie's a little crooked." She pulled Yuna close and untied her tie, all the while whispering to her: "I have no doubt that you'll be just fine in an Action Duel."

"Y-you think so?" Yuna blushed, realizing Kazumi's face was getting really close to her own.

"I not only think it, I guarantee it." Said Kazumi. "In fact… there's something I'd been meaning to give to you." When she finished re-knotting her tie, and straightened it properly, Kazumi handed Yuna a pair of cards. "Make good use of both of them today."

"What are they?" asked Yuna, examining them. "…they're blank?"

"They'll show their true forms when united in a duel." Kazumi explained, to a blank expression of confusion from Yuna. "They'll work when they need to, trust me." She clarified. She tightened Yuna's tie properly and tucked the end under her jacket. "There, much better! Good luck, Yuna~!"

Before Yuna could question her any more, Kazumi then approached Alice, and whispered to her: "I'm aware that you have a very… special legendary card in your arsenal. Is that right, Ms. Gollman?"

"I wasn't planning on using it with her," Alice replied, though wanting to express surprise that Kazumi even knew she had that card. "She's new to this, so…"

"Oh, that wasn't what I was suggesting." Kazumi smirked. "I WANT you to use that card."

"Eh?" Alice blinked, but before she could question Kazumi any further, she had already left. "Uh, well… Ah, ready to begin, Yuna?"

"As I'll ever be." Yuna nodded.

Alice led the way into a large, open court with a high ceiling, and a smooth, translucent black floor, underneath which Yuna could make out some sort of inactive machine. She had seen courts like these before in many of GDS's advertisements, but seeing one in person like this was exciting.

"Hey, if you think it's impressive now, you haven't even seen the half of it!" Alice chuckled. She equipped her white duel disk, and powered it up, a blue blade igniting, to Yuna's amazement.

Eagerly, Yuna strapped her own pink duel disk to her wrist, but for some reason wouldn't activate when she put her deck in the slot. She scratched her head as she examined the duel disk's display.

"Um, everything okay with your gear?" asked Alice.

"Er, how do you turn this thing on?" Yuna said sheepishly. "I've… never used a duel disk before."

"What?" Alice blinked. "Seriously?"

"Oh, that's right." Reiko nodded. "Before we came to GDS, we only ever played Duel Monsters tabletop at school. Heck, even for our entrance exams, we used one of those old duel arenas."

"Well then you're about to step into a whole new world of dueling, Yuna!" Alice grinned. "…Assuming you can figure out how to work your duel disk, of course."

After she figured out that she had to switch her disk to duel mode, Yuna flinched as a light blue blade sparked to life right before her eyes.

"Okay then. Now all that's left is to set the stage." Alice nodded. "Activate Action Field: Plain Plain!"

Yuna looked down as the machinery under the floor began glowing and spinning, illuminating the ground beneath her feet, and transforming the entire arena.

She watched with awe as the walls and high ceiling faded in favor of a wide open, bright blue sky, Yuna and Alice standing on opposite sides of a brick circle, elevated in the center of a lush green plain littered with colorful flowers, with a calm river streaming through the circle.

"Wow!" Yuna gasped. As she looked around her, it seemed impossible to think that just seconds ago, she was standing in a plain, nondescript dueling court; not only did every blade of grass look exactly like the real thing, but she could even feel a light, fresh spring breeze waft by.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Alice grinned. "But you haven't seen anything yet."

"DUEL!"

Alice: 4000

 **Yuna: 4000**

"I'll leave the first turn to you." Alice offered. "And remember: the one who takes the first turn skips their draw phase."

"Right." Yuna nodded, her hand stopping just short of her deck, ready to draw out of instinct. Um..." She looked at her current hand. "I'll summon Enchanting Mermaid in Attack Mode!"

A lovely red-headed mermaid with sallow skin and a bright pink tail and top splashed out from the river behind her (ATK: 1200).

"I'll also set two cards face-down, and end my turn."

"Alright, my turn," Alice drew her first card. "And I'll start off by summoning Madolche Butlerusk in attack mode!"

What appeared on Alice's field was a well-dressed, if a little short and child-like, man with a monocle, who was pouring a cup of tea (ATK: 1500). "Now Bulterusk will attack your Mermaid!"

The well-dress monster stepped forward before tripping and spilling the hot tea at the mermaid. Yuna ran and dove for the dropped cup of tea, but it had emptied, spilling all over Enchanted Mermaid, who screamed as she was splashed with scalding hot tea.

Yuna: 4000 - 3700

"Aw, I wanted to try some of your tea," Yuna mumbled as she stood with the empty tea cup she'd saved. "It looked really good." She returned the cup to Butlerusk, who bowed appreciatively.

"Seriously?" Reiko laughed. "Yuna, this is a duel, not a tea party!"

"Why didn't she stop that attack, though?" Hotaru mused. "She had two face-downs, which could have easily saved her and her monster..." She paused as she watched Yuna fiddling with the controls on her duel disk, and sighed. "I think we should have taught her how to use that thing before we put her in a duel..."

"I'll end my turn for now."

"Ah-ha!" Yuna blurted as she figured out how to activate her disk's Trap Card mechanic. However, as she pressed the icon on the touchscreen, it was only to be met by an 'ERROR' message. Just then, she noticed that Alice had finished her turn.

"Oh, sorry. My turn." she drew, and re-examined her hand with its newest addition. "I summon 7-Colored Fish in Attack Mode!" Another monster jumped from the river nearby; a big, sharp-toothed, elongated fish striped with every color of the rainbow (ATK: 1800).

"Attack Madolche Butlerusk!" The fish jumped high out of the water, lunging at the little butler with its fangs poised to kill.

At the same time, a sudden breeze passed through, carrying flower petals with it, as well as a card disguised among the different colored petals, which Alice spotted. She jumped out of the circle, ran across the green field, and snagged it in midair.

"I activate the Action Card 'Assault', giving my Butlerusk an extra 600 ATK."

(Butlerusk 1500-2100)

Butlerusk calmly poured another cup of tea before smoothly flinging the contents of the cup right into the fish's open mouth.

Wha...!?" Yuna gasped as Alice activated the stray card. "But... how did you...? That's cheating, isn't it?!"

"Nope!" Alice proudly declared as 7-Colored Fish too was destroyed by the little butler's potent tea.

(Yuna: 3700 - 3400)

"That was the prime feature of Action Dueling: An Action Card." She showed Yuna the card, which, rather than the typical spiral backing, bore a stylized 'A'. "Action Fields are sprinkled with these special cards, and you can grab and activate them at any point during an Action Duel. However, you can only have one Action Card in your hand at any given time. These cards incentivize the duelist to be one with their deck and their field to win."

Yuna looked around the simple plain with this new knowledge in mind; in the corner of her eye, she saw another Action Card hooked to a flower that was bending with the breeze. She jumped down from the circle, and grabbed it.

 _"_ _Great! I can't use it this turn, but this can definitely help!"_ She thought. "I'll end my turn." She said aloud.

Alice drew her card and looked at it with a little smirk. _"I think I'll save this one for later."_

"I switch my Butlerusk into defense mode and set one monster and one more card face down."

Butlerusk took a knee while another two cards appeared to his side and back (DEF: 800).

"I'll end my turn with that."

"I set a monster face-down as well." said Yuna, noticing just the right monster. "And then I activate Monster Reborn, to bring back 7-Colored Fish. Then, I equip him with Fairy Meteor Crush." the rainbow fish glowed with a distinct fuchsia aura. "Attack Butlerusk!" 7-Colored Fish jumped out to bite the little butler for a second time, and this time, it successfully struck its dapper prey.

"And because of Fairy Meteor Crush's effect, my monster also inflicts piercing damage: damage equal to the difference between my monster's ATK and your monster's DEF."

(Alice: 4000 - 3000)

"Awright, Yuna!" Reiko cheered. "Nice going!"

"It's your turn." Yuna nodded to her opponent.

"Not bad," Alice commented as she drew her next card. "However, you should know that when a Madolche monster is sent from the field to the graveyard, it then returns to the deck."

"Ooh, sounds like someone enjoys their tasty, high-class sweets~!" Reiko teased.

"I summon Madolche Messengelato in attack mode!" A new monster appeared in a red coat and big sack with a number of letters inside. (ATK: 1600)

"Aw, why do all your monsters need to be so cute?" Yuna said, somewhere between gushing and pouting.

"I'm not done yet. Next, I play the field spell Madolche Chateau."

The sky began release what looked like snow but it smelled like powdered sugar. It then coalesced into a large castle composed of cookies, cakes, pies and other assorted sweets.

Yuna's stomach growled, as she found herself craving every single dessert that made up Alice's chateau.

"...You wouldn't happen to know Michio Mokota, would you?" asked Hotaru, feeling similarly engrossed by Alice's delectable forces.

"Not personally." Alice replied. You can ask my dad, though, if you want. Anyway, my Chateau gives my Madolche monsters a 500 point boost."

(Messengelato ATK: 1600/DEF: 1000 - ATK: 2100/DEF: 1500)

"Now Messengelato will attack your fish!"

The postman monster whipped three letters out of his mail bag: one looked like it had the writing 'Elect-,' another said 'Teleph-' and the one in front said 'Water;' below that, in big bold letters, was the word 'BILL.' He then threw them at 7-Colored Fish like throwing knives. The mail shuriken struck the fish in mid-air, and it plummeted limply back into the river, where it was destroyed.

(Yuna: 3400 - 3100)

"Yikes," Reiko commented. "Dad always said that the bills were killing him, but that's just ridiculous!"

"And with that," Alice concluded. "I activate my face down, Madolche Ticket, and end my turn."

Yuna wasn't sure what to do now to counter Alice's monsters, not with her Chateau in place, or with her diminished hand. She glanced at what she drew: it was one of the blank cards Kazumi had given her before the duel, but with the card still blank, it was currently useless to her.

 _"No real choice, but to go on the defensive..."_ She thought. "I end my turn."

"My turn then," Alice drew her card. "I summon Madolche Mewfeuille to the field."

Out came a little pink cat in a purple coat and hat. (ATK: 500 - ATK: 1000) Yuna squealed with adoration for the cute kitten, spouting something about not wanting to fight him.

"I think Yuna's too seduced by Alice's cutesy deck to take this seriously." Reiko muttered.

"I think that's exactly what Alice wants…" Hotaru sighed.

"Thanks to Mewfeuille's effect, I can summon another Madolche from my hand, so I'll bring out Madolche Chouxvalier!"

A young man in a French coat upon a plushy horse, drawing his candy cane sword, appeared next to the cat on the field (Madolche Chouxvalier ATK: 1700 - ATK: 2200)

Yuna scratched her head, not sure how to combat the clearly growing threat; her face-down had a high defense, but not high enough for this monster... "Oh!" She recalled one of her two face-down cards, and quickly tapped the icon on her disk.

"I activate Trap Hole!" She declared. "If you summon a monster with 1000 ATK or higher, I can destroy it." A hole opened up right under Chouxvalier's feet, and he fell down into the pit in a cartoonish fashion.

"He's just gonna go back in the deck. And thanks to Madolche Ticket I get to add a Madolche monster from my deck to my hand."

"Right..." Yuna remembered.

Alice looked at her hand for a bit, "I'll end my turn there."

When Yuna drew her next card, she immediately played it:

"I summon Flying Penguin!" a funny squawking sound could be heard, as a pale blue penguin with comically large wing-like ears soared down from the sky, landing gracefully in front of Yuna, its flippers spread wide in a showmanship-like manner. (ATK: 1200) "Attack Mewfeuille!"

Flying Penguin got a clumsy running start as he flapped his flippers, and took off. "And I activate Rush Recklessly, boosting his ATK by 700!" (Flying Penguin ATK: 1200 - 1900) The penguin flew as high up as he could, and then descended into a nosedive. Flying penguin smashed into the earth, destroying Mewfeuille, and creating a large crater in the brick center of the arena. (Alice: 3000 - 2100)

"I end my turn." said Yuna, as she pet her trusty penguin.

"Mewfeuille returns to my deck and I draw," Alice drew her next card. "And I'll summon another Madolche Chouxvalier in attack mode!" Another of the knight-like monsters appeared (ATK: 1700 – 2200) "Attack that penguin with Sugary Sweet Saber!"

"I activate my Action Card: Evasion!" Yuna declared. "With this, your attack is negated and I take no damage…" Yuna yelped as Flying Penguin rocketed her high into the sky, evading Chouxvalier's attack.

As she slowly fluttered down, with Flying Penguin holding out its ears to slow their descent like a parachute, she got an amazing view of the lush, green landscape, and as she hugged onto her monster tightly, she felt a distinct thrill as understanding for Action Dueling fell into place: At that moment, she felt as if she were truly one with her monsters and her field.

From the observation deck above where Reiko and Hotaru spectated, Kazumi watched over the duel with great intrigue, as she watched Yuna get her first real taste of the Action Duel.

"Good to see that you're having fun, Yuna," She smiled. "But let's see what you're really capable of."

When Yuna landed softly on the ground opposite Alice and indicated that her turn was done, Kazumi contacted Alice via duel disk:

"Yuna has played really well for her first Action Duel, hasn't she?" She said. "So, I would say now would be the perfect time for you to stop holding back; someone with her kind of talent should be tested to her full potential."

"I'll end my turn," Alice grinned.

As she drew her next card, Yuna couldn't help but notice that Alice appeared to be somewhat distracted. However, she paid such a temporary distraction no mind, as she pulled a perfect card for her next move.

"First, I Flip Summon my face-down monster: Aqua Madoor!" a blue-haired mystic revealed himself from the shadows (ATK: 1200).

"And then I activate Shield & Sword, which switches all of our monsters' ATK and DEF!" (Flying Penguin ATK: 1200-800, Aqua Madoor ATK: 1200-2000, Madolche Chouxvalier ATK: 2200-1800)

"Then, I sacrifice Flying Penguin to summon Amphibian Beast!" Flying Penguin gave a 'farewell' bow, as he vanished in a swirling vortex, from which a large, green, gnarly sea monster emerged, clawed fins at the ready (ATK: 2400).

"Smart move!" Reiko grinned.

"Now, Aqua Madoor, attack Chouxvalier!" Madoor summoned a flash of water, which tore down the plush horseman (Alice: 2100 - 1900).

"And now, Amphibian Beast, Attack her face-down!" The speedy sea creature zoomed at its target at a blinding speed, and pounced, slashing at the hidden monster..."

Only to slam head-first into a metal plate and fall on its back, stars circling its head. The card flipped over to reveal a child-like monster in a maid outfit holding up a tray which now had an imprint of Amphibian Beast's face.

"Allow me to introduce Madolche Marmalmaide," Alice gestured to the maid as she knocked the dent out of the tray. (DEF: 2000 - 2500) "And because her defense was higher than your monster's attack, you take damage."

(Yuna: 3100 - 3000)

"Oh, ouch!" Yuna said, watching Amphibian Beast stumble around comically to return to its proper place, stars still spinning around his head. "Are you okay?"

Her monster shook his head vigorously, making the stars tumble away, and he resumed his usual battle ready stance, giving her a scaly thumbs-up.

"Good." Yuna nodded. "Then I end my turn."

Alice drew her next card.

"You're not doing too bad, Yuna. Why don't we take things up a notch?"

"What do you have in mind?" Yuna inquired, feeling ready for whatever dainty treat-themed monsters Alice had to throw at her.

Alice simply gave a smirk before she pulled a card from her hand.

"I release two of my monsters in order to advance summon this!"

Alice's two monsters vanished into light, leaving her field bare. Yuna looked around to find Alice's new monster but to no avail. Then she saw it, a small fissure snaking its way across the field; even traveling between her legs. More cracks splintered off the long one, encompassing a large area of the duel field.

Yuna stepped back from where she stood, frightened and uncertain of what was to come; this was certainly unlike anything that she'd seen from Alice thus far...

"Oooh, what will it be this time~?" Reiko said in a mockingly dressy voice. "Your ace monster? 'Gigantor Cupcake', perhaps? Careful, Yuna, it might crush you under is delectably sweet icing!"

Suddenly, a section of the earth was torn apart as what looked like a titanic, spiked arthropod leg ripped itself out before slamming into the ground; sending tremors through the arena.

Reiko's laughing and mockery was brought to a sudden, screeching halt as she saw the gigantic insectoid leg arise from the crag. As another leg just like it arose opposite the first, she was very suddenly being filled with dread at whatever monstrosity Alice had just summoned.

"...Please, PLEASE just summon the giant, tasty cupcake instead...!" She squeaked anxiously.

"Sorry, no cupcakes here," Alice simply stated as a third leg, parallel to the first, came out.

While Yuna tried as hard as she could to put on a brave face, in spite of the enormity of the monster that was rising from the fissure, Reiko was cringing madly in her seat at the spectator's box, a big, icy chill shooting its way up her spine. Suddenly, she was very glad that it wasn't her dueling right now, as the monster finally revealed its complete form...

Right after the fourth leg arose, a large area of earth began to mound up before something ripped itself out of the earth, sending debris everywhere. Four more of the spiked legs uncurled and set themselves upon the plain. Stone and soil rolled off the mass, revealing purple, green and grey chitin. Four rows of spikes adorned the abdomen while the cephalothorax held 8 red eyes and a pair of massive fangs.

"Allow me to introduce... KUMONGOUS, THE STICKY STING KAIJU!"

Said monster then let out a deep screech.

Reiko's hair stood very high on end, and her face turned a pale, ghostly white. As the tremendous arachnid let out a loud screech, Reiko jumped back, falling out of her chair as she screamed just as loudly as the massive creature before her.

"AAAAHHHHHHHH!" She cried. She grabbed two chairs, and scurried into the corner, barricading herself away as she assumed a terrified fetal position.

"What's with you?" Hotaru blinked, watching Reiko fortify her safe little corner.

"Y-Y-Yuna?! Kill it! KILL IT, KILL IT, KILL IT, KILL IT!" She screamed, every syllable dripping with blood-curdling fear and revulsion. "I hate insects, I hate bugs, I hate creepy-crawlies, I hate, hate, hate, HATE, HATE, HATE, HATE! SPIDERS!" She was breathing raggedly, every fiber of her being overwhelmed with disgust and terror. "Get a giant flyswatter, some Obelisk-strength insecticide, I don't care, just make that atrocity DIE!"

Hotaru, Yuna, Alice and even Kumongous itself sweatdropped at the girls tirade.

Reiko peeked out from behind her chair barricade at all the sweatdropped expressions.

"What?" She shrugged. "Lotsa people hate bugs! You mean you're not terrified of that disgusting abomination, Yuna?!"

"Well... kind of," Yuna admitted. "But for..." She swallowed as she began feeling very small compared to this behemoth spider. "...Very different reasons."

"Oookay," Alice muttered in confusion. "Anyway, I'll have Kumogous attack your Aqua Madoor!"

The titanic arachnid fired a string of web that ensnared the water wizard before it yanked off its feet, right towards the spider's open mandibles.

Too distracted to activate any of her traps, or do anything beyond react with shock and terror at the surprisingly massive monster, Yuna was blown back off her feet as her monster was thrashed and devoured by the gigantic spider. (Yuna: 3000 - 1800)

She could hardly even believe what she was seeing; after trading blows with numerous dessert-themed monsters, it seemed unbelievable that now she was faced with something so huge, so intimidating...

This did not go unnoticed by Alice.

"I know what you're thinking: 'Why is something like this mixed with my Madolche monsters, right?" she asked, thumbing at Kumongous.

Yuna got to her feet.

"Well... yes." She said, unable to connect the towering arachnid with any of the other cheery, cute monsters in Alice's deck, much less the mansion of desserts behind her.

"I'm sure you've noticed that, despite being tricky, my Madolche monsters don't exactly have a lot of high attack power. That being said, they wouldn't do well against some of the heavy hitters out there. That's why I have Kumongous and his fellow Kaiju in my deck; for just such an occasion."

"I'm sure that's not the only reason." Kazumi mused to herself as she casually watched the battle unfold.

"Well, okay..." Yuna mumbled. "But..."

"WHY SOMETHING SO DAMN DISGUSTING!?" Reiko screamed.

"What problem do you have with spiders?" asked Hotaru.

"C'mon, seriously?" Reiko blustered. "Everyone hates those nasty things. What's not to be afraid of? I mean, you're not terrified by that… that thing, Yuna?"

"I am, but..." Yuna looked up in terror at the sheer size of the Kaiju monster. "For very different reasons."

"I set two cards face down and end my turn." Alice said, amused by the reactions to her newest monster.

"So..." Kazumi smirked as she looked down on the monstrous spider, while Yuna hesitated her next move. "She's got more than one of those rare monsters? Interesting. I'll just have to see how this plays out..."

With the arrival of such a large tonal shift in her opponent's monsters, Yuna was feeling a bit less clever and confident than she was just moments ago.

"What to do...?" She mumbled, racking her brain for ideas. "What to...? Ah... I activate Double Summon. This allows me to Normal Summon twice this turn! So, I summon Gagagigo, and one other monster face-down." Her Amphibian Beast was accompanied by a tall, muscular reptilian warrior with sharp spikes on his shoulders, and sparse leather vambraces (ATK: 1850)

"And I activate the Trap Metalmorph. I can equip it to Gagagigo, giving him 300 ATK. The monster was coated in a silver metallic coat, its claws sharpened for maximum effect (Gagagigo ATK: 1850 - 2150). "And now I'm going to attack Kumongous! And when it attacks, Metalmorph gives it half the ATK of the monster it's attacking."

Gagagigo ran and leapt to attack Kumongous's eight-eyed face, his arms and tail growing several razor sharp blades (ATK: 2150 - 3350).

"I reveal my face down: Mystical Space Typhoon, and destroy your Metalmorph!"

Gagagigo's armor vanished, leaving him vulnerable, as well as deeply weakened. (ATK: 3350 - 1850) He looked directly into Kumongous's eight glowing red eyes, and began to sweat, knowing full well he was doomed. The Spider spit a little blob of web, and Gagagigo flew across the arena, smashing into the ground.

(Yuna: 1800 - 1250)

Yuna sighed as she declared her turn over, not much else she could do right now.

Alice drew her next card. _"This card could win me the duel,"_ she then looked up to where Kazumi was; the others still ignorant of her presence at the arena. _"But let's see what it is about this girl that actually caught your interest."_

"I reveal my face down: Skill Successor. This increases my monster's attack points by 400."

(Kumongous: ATK 2400 – 2800)

"And now Kumongous, attack Amphibian Beast!"

"I activate my own face-down," Yuna countered. "Enemy Controller. With this, I switch Kumongous to Defense Mode." (Kumongous DEF: 2500)

"Then with that, I set a face-down. It's your move." Alice conceded.

 _"That monster isn't just gigantic,"_ Yuna thought. _"It's unbelievably powerful! Amphibian Beast is one of the best monsters I have, and Kumongous can easily destroy him."_ She eyed the blank card in her hand. _"Kazumi said this would be a really powerful card, but only when it's united with its twin. Maybe this turn...?"_ She drew, but only to gain another one of her own spell cards. _"Pot of Avarice. Maybe this time...?"_

"By activating Pot of Avarice, I can return up to 5 monsters in my Graveyard to my deck, then shuffle and draw two more cards." five of her previously destroyed monsters ejected from the graveyard slot, and Yuna slid them back into her deck. She was ready to take the deck out and shuffle it manually, but she recoiled as her cards were automatically shuffled rapidly. When the auto-shuffler stopped, she drew two new cards, hoping one of them was the one she needed...

"No, but I can use this!" She grinned. "I activate the Continuous Spell Heart of the Underdog!" She caught a glimpse of a card in the corner of her eye, and made a run for it. She jumped onto the back of Amphibian Beast as he followed her in the river. The creature rocketed through the water lightning fast, Yuna snatching the Action Card out of the air.

"I activate the Action Card: Assault. As you remember, it gives my monster an added 600 ATK. (Amphibian Beast ATK: 2400 – 3000) And now, Amphibian Beast, attack Kumongous!"

"I use my face-down card Terrashift." Alice stated. "With this, I can destroy one Field Spell, and with only one in play, you can guess which one." Madolche Chateau exploded into sugary pieces, returning her side of the field to its previous grassy plain.

"Kumongous! Now!" The massive spider shot a jet of web that Alice grabbed onto. She swung across the field, and dove into a combat roll as she grabbed an Action Card of her own: "I activate No Action! This cancels out the last Action Card played; In this case, your Assault!"

(Amphibian Beast ATK: 3000 – 2400)

"No!" Yuna gasped. She barely had time to say this word as her monster's attack was derailed, and Kumongous destroyed Amphibian Beast.

(Yuna: 1250 – 1150)

"Wait, I'm confused. Why would Alice go out of her way to destroy Madolche Chateau?" asked Reiko. "That doesn't make any sense."

"Because it was preventing her from using any Action Cards." Hotaru explained. "An Action Field is a Field Spell that's active on both players' fields, and its effect is the reason why Action Cards appear, and why a duelist can make use of them."

"Okay." Reiko nodded. Yuna listened interestedly to this explanation as well, equally confused by Alice's actions.

"But when Alice activated Madolche Chateau, she replaced the Action Field that was active on her side of the field; basically, she activated her own Field Spell and gained its effects, at the expense of Plain Plain's."

"So she couldn't use any Action Cards when Madolche Chateau was on the field," Yuna pieced together.

"Exactly." Hotaru nodded.

"Then I end my turn by setting a face-down card." Yuna concluded her move.

Alice didn't even glance at the card she drew, instead focused on battle:

"I switch Kumongous back into Attack Mode. And now, attack Yuna's Life Points directly!" The titanic spider thrust its spiked leg straight down on Yuna's head, but she was prepared for this much:

"I activate my trap card Call of the Haunted! This lets me call back a monster from my graveyard: Amphibian Beast." Her monster sprang out of the ground, his claws raised, ready to protect his master.

"It's a tie," Hotaru observed. "Both monsters' ATK are at 2400, so if this attack goes through, both monsters will be destroyed."

"Hey, as long as that atrocity spider's dead, I don't care!" Reiko barked.

"Kumongous isn't going anywhere!" Alice smirked. "I activate my trap Skill Successor!"

"But you have no face-down cards on your field." Yuna pointed out. "Besides, that card's in your graveyard from earlier."

"True, but Skill Successor's got a secondary ability." Alice explained. "By banishing it from my graveyard, I can activate it a second time, and Kumongous gains 800 ATK!"

(Kumongous ATK: 2400 – 3100)

The massive arachnid spat a jet of web from its mouth, coiling Amphibian Beast up into a defenseless position, leaving him vulnerable as he was smashed by Kumongous, blowing Yuna off her feet.

(Yuna: 1150 – 350)

"Your turn." Alice concluded.

Yuna panted as she lay worn out on the dueling field. Right now, her situation felt so hopeless, she wanted to find and use the 'surrender' option on her duel disk…. And yet, despite such impossible odds of winning with her obsolete deck, she couldn't help but feel excited.

Today, as Alice had promised, Yuna had seen a whole new side of dueling that she could never imagine, one beyond her wildest dreams. She was lying in a lush green plain that had earlier been a regular duel court, the monsters of her deck had come to life right before her eyes, and with them, what had previously been a tabletop card game had become something… so much bigger. So much more amazing.

As she rolled over onto her back, Yuna laughed excitedly as she drank in all of her incredible new experiences. Despite victory in this duel seeming impossible, she hardly cared; she was just having too much fun to care!

"This is amazing!" She laughed as she sat up. "Is this kind of thing what we do every day?"

"Pretty much." Alice shrugged. "Glad you're having fun with it. I'm honestly pretty excited myself; I wanna see what you'll do next."

Yuna grinned as she got to her feet, and pulled her next card. As she drew, bright sparks flew from her deck as, for a split second, Yuna saw that her newest card was also one of her first of this duel: Enchanted Mermaid, returned to her deck by Pot of Avarice.

"Because of Heart of the Underdog's effect, I can reveal the Normal Monster I drew, and then draw again." She flashed the card she drew, and pulled another, this one also familiar: Flying Penguin. Another draw: Spiral Serpent. Another draw….

The second blank one given to her by Kazumi. However, it didn't remain blank for very long, as both new cards took on new forms; new forms unlike any Yuna had ever seen.

While the top half of these cards were the same yellow as Yuna's other Normal Monster cards, the bottom halves of each were green like her spell cards, and each bore a pair of diamond symbols, one blue on the left, and one red on the right.

"What are these?" Yuna asked herself. She took in the cards' strange designs, and then, for reasons beyond her understanding or explanation, she knew exactly what to do with them, as if the cards themselves told her all she needed to know:

"With the Scale 1 Blue Moon Magician and Scale 9 Red Sun Magician, I set the Pendulum Scale!" She placed each card on the outermost edges of her duel disk, and the word 'PENDULUM' illuminated across the blade in brilliant rainbow letters. Two pillars of light towered behind Yuna, where the two Spellcasters levitated, each bearing the golden numbers '1' and '9'. One was an elegant sorceress cloaked in blue robes that hid most of her face, save a single bright blue eye, and holding a wooden staff with a silver crescent moon dangling from its end. The other dressed in bright red, holding a golden staff that bore a gem that glowed like sunlight.

"With this, I can now Special Summon any number of monsters between levels 2 and 8 simultaneously. Pendulum Summon! My friends! Take the stage!"

A bright portal opened between the two Pendulum Monsters, from which several bright, colorful lights descended onto Yuna's field: "Enchanted Mermaid (ATK: 1400), Flying Penguin (ATK: 1200), and Spiral Serpent (ATK: 2900)!"

"Whoa...!" Hotaru gasped.

"What was that?" asked Reiko, snapped out of her arachnophobia, blind sighted by Yuna's powerful display.

"Pendulum monsters? I didn't know you play with those!" Alice exclaimed excitedly. _"I wonder how she'd fare against my other deck."_

I... don't..." Yuna muttered, wondering how she even knew what to do with them... "Ah, I mean... Now, Spiral Serpent, attack Kumongous the Sticky String Kaiju with Spiral Wave!"

The water surrounding the brick center of the arena shot up into a spiraling beam, and with a roar from Spiral Serpent, impaled Kumongous, bringing the massive arachnid to its many knees.

(Alice: 1900 – 1400)

"Yeah! Take that, ya eight-legged bastard!" Reiko cheered.

"And now, since you have no monsters on your field, Enchanting Mermaid and Flying Penguin can attack your Life Points directly!"

Alice simply grinned and shrugged as the pair of water monsters converged on her; she saw an Action Card that she easily could have grabbed and used to turn the battle against Yuna, but why not let her have this victory?

(Alice: 1400 – 0)

 **Winner: Yuna**

"I... I did it!" As the grassy plain and the remaining monsters faded to return the duel court to its previous state, Yuna jumped into the air triumphantly as she cheered delightedly at her victory.

"Nicely done." Alice smiled as she deactivated and put away her duel disk.

"Nicely done indeed." Kazumi grinned as she watched Yuna and Alice shake hands and exchange words. "I think you're exactly the girl I've been looking for."

 **To Be Continued...**

* * *

 ***"Yuna" is the Okinawan word for Sea Hibiscus, a tropical flower. Such is the main reason for Yuna's water attribute monsters.**

 **That took longer than I'd hoped. And I wanted to make something special for the ending, but couldn't. As always though, I'd love to know what you all thought.**

 **Oh, but before I leave to get a start on ch3, here's something funny I'd noticed while writing this chapter: In the first chapter, all four of the characters introduced had blue hair (…I totally don't have a fetish for blue-haired girls or anything! :P), and all four of the characters introduced in this chapter were blondes. And GDS's colors are blue and gold. Yeah, that was TOTALLY intentional….**

 **Special thanks to Azure Dragon of the East for his OCs Alice and Tammy Gollman.**

 **Speaking of which, since I know there'll be requests for OCs to be included: If you want to have your character in Love and Duels, please send me any and all OC information via PM.**

 **Next time, we may get a glimpse at some more familiar characters from the Arc-V universe ;)**

 **See you then!**


	3. Third Wheel

It was unusual for a student to be present for the weekly faculty meeting. The headmistress had insisted upon having Kazumi Yuunagi present for this particular meeting, but when she asked why, the headmistress wouldn't give her a clear answer.

The staff met today, not in the traditional meeting room, but in the headmistress's personal tea room, which had been specially prepared for its guests, with comfortable cushions to seat everyone attending, and tea had even been brewed for everyone present.

Kazumi, having finished making the tea as the teachers had gathered, sat uncertainly next to the headmistress's position as the few women who'd gathered so far eyed her curiously.

"Good morning, Mrs. Yuki, and you as well… Mrs. Yuki." Kazumi greeted the pair of married teachers as they sat across from her.

"Good morning, Ms. Yuunagi." Asuka Yuki nodded pleasantly. "What brings you here today?"

"I'm… uncertain." Kazumi answered honestly. "The headmistress requested me to be present to this meeting, but she would not explain why; only that 'my talents are relevant to today's discussion.'"

"I wonder what she meant by that…?" Juri Yuki mused curiously.

The headmistress was the last to arrive. She easily stood out among the other ladies of GDS, donned in a vivid indigo kimono splashed with bright red autumn leaf patterns. Her aging face appeared to be in a constant frown, not at all aided by the wrinkles forming under her dark green eyes, magnified by her half-moon-shaped glasses. She had long, pale blue hair with small yet noticeable streaks of white, which had been tightly done up with floral accessories so that not a single strand felt past her neck.

When she took her seat next to Kazumi, the other teachers backed off of their cushions, politely bowed to the headmistress, greeted her, "Good morning, Headmistress," and returned to their seats.

"Good morning, ladies." The Headmistress replied curtly. "Kazumi, would you please serve our guests?"

"Yes, ma'am." Kazumi bowed her head as she walked around the table, pouring each of the teachers a cup of fresh, hot tea.

"And now, to business." The Headmistress stated, directly to the point. "This week, there is only one point of discussion that I would like to call to your attention. The coming month will be the date scheduled for the annual School Duel with our rival, Kaiser Duel School." She frowned even more at the use of such a name; she'd always considered it so pretentious…

"Oh, I've been looking forward to this one!" Juri piped up enthusiastically. "I always love seeing who duels each year."

"Juri…!" Asuka shushed her wife as everyone turned her way. This particular school duel had been a sensitive topic, especially around the Headmistress…

"There was once a point when I shared your optimistic enthusiasm, Mrs. Yuki." The Headmistress said, smiling in a way many could tell was fake. "However, with each school duel, I find myself dreading them more and more." Everyone present winced as they heard the Headmistress's teacup crack in her tight grip.

"GDS has lost three consecutive school duels, and I will stand for it no longer." She snarled. "What's more, is that clearly Principal Samejima is openly mocking our academy: He has announced that his representative in the school duel is to be a first year student!"

"The boy must be incredibly talented to…" Again, Asuka had to shush Juri, as the Headmistress began glaring daggers at her for voicing praise for their rival.

"I-is this why you've summoned me to this meeting?" asked Kazumi, hoping that the Headmistress might spare Juri her wrath.

"Indeed." Said the Headmistress. "Kazumi, as our academy's most talented student, I believe you are best suited to be our representative."

"I respectfully disagree." Kazumi replied. As the Headmistress turned to her with an impatient look, Kazumi quickly corrected herself: "I-I have no doubt that I could defeat this first year student. However, if Samejima has chosen a first year Senior, I believe it would be fitting that we do the same."

"That's actually a good idea." Tammy Gollman agreed. "If this freshman is as great as Samejima claims, it'd be all the greater taking him down a peg with one of our own."

The Headmistress frowned as many of the other teachers voiced their agreement with this idea. "Very well, then." She conceded with a sigh. "In that event, the only remaining question is: who will this first year be?"

Most drank their tea, taking the time to consider this question. Others seemed to already have their answers:

"My little sister, Alice, has shown a lot of promise." Tammy suggested.

"I've been impressed by Hotaru Hanazono." Another teacher put forth.

"Well, Kisa Ran is the highest-ranking student of her year." Said yet another.

The headmistress turned to Kazumi. "Do you think there are any first years of note?"

"I do have one in mind…" Kazumi smiled as she sipped her tea. "However, I would like to personally verify if she's as good as I believe her to be."

"Very well." The Headmistress nodded. "I look forward to seeing this first year with great interest. Until then, this meeting is adjourned."

* * *

 **Love and Duels in Full Bloom**

 **-Third Wheel-**

* * *

"Uh? Me?" Yuna blinked.

"Yes, I would like to request your assistance." Kazumi stated calmly. "Assuming, of course, you don't mind, Ms. Gollman?" She added, gesturing to the teacher.

"Not at all." Ms. Gollman smiled.

When Yuna left her seat, Kazumi took her hand, much to the jealousy of all the other students present, a Yuna.

 _"Their stares kind of hurt…"_ She thought nervously as she tried to avoid the jealous glares that'd been aimed directly at her. Unconsciously, she gripped Kazumi's hand tighter as she led her towards the door.

"Feeling anxious?" Kazumi whispered kindly. "Maybe this will help?" She lightly hugged Yuna, and planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. Unsurprisingly, this did nothing to qualm the furious jealousy that the other girls directed at Yuna.

"Well… we'll be on our way, then." Kazumi spoke awkwardly, but trying to maintain her usual elegant speech.

Reiko was glaring at Kazumi as she left the classroom for other reasons, yet also smirked with something resembling admiration.

"Smooth, Kazumi Yuunagi. Reeeeaaaal smooth." She sneered.

"What was that all about?" Hotaru shrugged.

* * *

As everyone passing in the halls turned to look at Kazumi, Yuna felt very distinctly out of place by her side, almost as if she were an eyesore next to the gracious beauty that guided her; not helping at all, was the fact that many others were clearly glaring daggers at her for being able to walk alongside the most gifted senior student of GDS.

"Just ignore them…" Kazumi said softly.

"Okay…" Easier said than done, in Yuna's eyes. She was pretty sure that if Kazumi wasn't essentially protecting her, each and every girl would tear her apart. "Um… where are we going?" she asked.

"The library." Kazumi replied. "As I said before, I'm in need of your assistance. I hope that with your help, I can find the answers that I'm looking for."

Yuna opened her mouth, ready to ask what it was that Kazumi was looking for the answers to, but thought better than to ask, knowing Kazumi would likely not give her a straight answer.

"It's not something that I can discuss out in the open." Kazumi whispered. "I'll tell you when we get to there."

Yuna had her own vision of what the academy of GDS would be like, and as Kazumi guided the way past old stone buildings and brick streets, she compared the genuine article to the vision of the academy in her mind's eye.

When she had fantasized about being at GDS, Yuna had imagined it to be a high-tech utopia, much like the Leo Corporation's Duel preparatory schools on a grander scale. However, outside of the dueling courts shown to her by Alice a few days prior, that was nothing like the GDS she was seeing today: rather, what she saw was more comparable to an antique, 19th century town, with every brick and mortar in every building and walkway having been placed by hand with no indication of aid from modern technology.

Kazumi, clearing knowing exactly where to go, strode briskly through campus with Yuna in tow. Noticing the discomfort she felt in the many angry and/or jealous stares they got, she walked off the road, cutting through the campus and into the woods, and broke into a run.

"We're taking a little shortcut." She said playfully in reaction to Yuna's inquisitive glance.

Yuna lost any sense of direction she might have been building when it came to navigating GDS as she was very hurriedly dragged through the woods.

"Where are we going?" She panted, getting even more confused.

"To the Secret Garden~!" Kazumi smiled enthusiastically.

"Garden…?" Yuna repeated. She recalled Kazumi saying she wanted to find something at the library, so it made no sense to her why she was being taken to a garden…

"You'll see." Kazumi laughed.

* * *

After being dragged through bushes and trees, Yuna staggered as Kazumi finally slowed down, having entered a clearing, where a two-story building stood, apparently abandoned; it appeared to have been sparsely maintained from the outside, as the roof and outer walls were thatched and overgrown with thick layers of moss and vegetation.

"Here we are." Kazumi said, as if presenting the building to Yuna. "Welcome to the Secret Garden."

"Oh…" Yuna muttered, feeling she halfway understood. "So it's a green house?"

"No, not that kind of garden." Kazumi chuckled as she pushed the door open. Yuna felt a shot of cool air rush past her as she followed her senior inside.

"Oh, it's a library!" Yuna gasped, much louder than she had intended.

"Sh!" Kazumi and the librarian shushed.

"S-sorry…" Yuna whispered.

The library was another big part of GDS that had defied Yuna's imagination; she had envisioned the library of the greatest duel academy in the world to be a tremendous, magnificent monument of academic achievement; pristine, perfect, and polished, with more than four floors containing all the knowledge the dueling world had to offer, all lit brilliantly lit, and detailed statues of gold and marble depicting famous intellectual figures.

Perhaps at one time, that was exactly how the library may have appeared, however, that was definitely not the library that Yuna saw: the inside was hardly dilapidated like the outside appeared to be, but it was quite simple, with plain wooden bookshelves and flooring, and the entire building was very dimly lit, with only sunlight from the windows providing any sort of lighting.

"S-so what are we looking for?" asked Yuna.

"Some important knowledge on our school's history that I'm rather intrigued by." Kazumi replied. "You see, these buildings stood long before the Leo Corporation was ever established, let alone GDS. That means that it's quite likely that these walls could hold countless untold secrets. And I'm fascinated in learning about whatever secrets there are to uncover; this library alone is known to hold some interesting mysteries, and one such mystery is what I want to learn more about today."

"A mystery to the library?" Yuna mused. "What kind of mystery?"

"Legend has it that the deck of a legendary duelist is hidden somewhere in this library." Kazumi answered. "And I intend to find it." She took a scrap of paper from her bag, scribbled several quick notes on it, and handed it to Yuna. "I want you to search this floor for any information relating to these topics. Meanwhile, I'll search the top floor for the same information. Think you can do that?"

"Ah," Yuna half-hesitated. Just glancing at the list of names and subjects made her feel ever-so-slightly overwhelmed by the task that Kazumi had given her, but then she decided: "Yes!"

"Good." Kazumi smiled, glad to know that she was up to the task. "Come and let me know if you find anything of worth." Yuna nodded, and she and Kazumi split up to begin their search.

Yuna looked over the names and topics that Kazumi had given her, and quickly started to wonder if she really could help Kazumi:

-History of the Secret Garden  
-The Founding of GDS  
-The Four Dimensions  
-Famous Duelists of the 19th Century  
-The Legendary Deck of Caelum

"None of this makes any sense…" Yuna muttered. "Where do I even start…?" She read and re-read the list over and over, until she noticed a theme that three, arguably four of them had in common: "History."

She promptly looked for and found the history section, and began combing through the books in the aisle, searching for a title that could potentially link to one of the subjects Kazumi had given.

"Oh, sorry…" She whispered as she bumped into another student in the aisle. The student didn't seem to care however, as her attentions had been placed on the opposite shelf in the aisle… or, more specifically, another girl leaned back against the aisle.

A gasp had escaped Yuna's lips as she saw that they were poised to kiss, which she managed to half-suppress by slapping a hand over her mouth. She desperately hoped that neither girl heard that…

Yuna moved into the next aisle, intent on leaving those two girls be, and continued her aimless search for one of Kazumi's topics. Faintly, she could hear the low moans of the girls as they kissed the next aisle over, and she blushed as she tried to shut the sounds out of her mind.

 _"They're doing something like that here? In the library, where anyone could…?"_

Her thoughts where distracted as she heard a thump, and the moaning grew slightly louder. She could even hear their lips smacking wetly against one another.

Too overrun by curiosity, Yuna peeked back into the aisle and watched as the girls made out, one pinned against the bookshelf, while the other passionately held her hands, both their eyes closed, as nothing else mattered to them but each other…

"What am I doing?!" Yuna whispered to herself, walking away from the action in progress. As she strode off, she could just briefly catch a glimpse of one of the girls opening an eye, and flashing Yuna a devious smirk.

Yuna turned back into the aisle that she had previously been searching, only to find two more girls taking up much of the aisle; they each had an arm wrapped affectionately around the others' shoulder, their other hands holding a book, which they read together.

Deciding she wouldn't find anything of use in this aisle anyways, Yuna scooted over to the next aisle over, thankful that this one was devoid of any other students, and resumed her search. Very shortly after skimming the titles, she came across one that clicked with her: One book simply titled 'Caelum.' She whipped out the paper that Kazumi had given her, and compared the name on the book's spine with the topic on the bottom: 'The Legendary Deck of Caelum.'

She pulled out the book, and looked it over before opening it: it was a thick, black, and rather old-looking book, its pages somewhat yellowed, and the corners of the hard cover rounded, with slight signs of fraying. Both the front and back covers were completely blank, minus the title 'Caelum' in golden lettering.

Yuna opened the book, to curiously find what appeared to be a map on the inside of the front cover. Clearly, whoever drew this was not the one who had originally made this book, as there were also several notes detailing the map below written in a series of runes that Yuna couldn't make any sense of; she even wondered for a moment if she was reading the map and the accompanying notes sideways, or upside-down.

She sat down at one of the nearby tables, and read the book itself, glad to find that it hadn't been written in the same strange language that the inside cover bore. It spoke of a mysterious, mythical duelist known as Caelum, who was believed to have created the very library where Yuna sat, to retain the knowledge that this world needed to preserve.

The book continued to speak of Caelum herself: how she was a woman whose beauty and elegance was unequaled, how she was a master duelist like no other, and the great things that she had done for so many people.

Absorbed in her story, Yuna read about Caelum with fascination for what may have been over an hour; though what she read spoke little of the mythic duelist's deck, it did make mention of an elusive secret passage leading under the library; that "many secrets may lie beneath the surface of Caelum's Secret Garden."

However, before Yuna could read any further, she had been snapped out of her concentrated state by a hand on her shoulder.

"Kazumi?" She looked over her shoulder to see her blue-haired senior with several books under her arm.

"I think that I may have found an interesting lead." Kazumi grinned.

"I think I did too." Yuna showed her the book she'd found. "I don't understand all of it, but it says that 'many secrets may lie beneath the surface of the Secret Garden.'"

"I'd begun to suspect as much." Kazumi mused. "Now the only question is… how to get there?" She sighed, clearly pouring through her memories on the subject, before skimming through one of the books that she'd collected in her search. Yuna, meanwhile, was left confused and uncertain what Kazumi was even trying to accomplish.

"I'm sure you've read a bit about Caelum?" Kazumi gestured to the book that Yuna found as she sat in the chair next to her. Yuna nodded. "Rather fascinating, isn't she?"

"She is." Yuna nodded in agreement.

"I've been interested in finding out more about her, and learning more of what happened to her legendary lost deck." Kazumi explained. "…As part of a class project." She added, knowing Yuna was ready to ask why.

Yuna was certain Kazumi was lying, though not so certain why. "So, what about the secret passage?" She asked, turning to the page that she'd been reading.

"There are rumors and myths abound about a secret passageway here in the library," Kazumi explained. "Some girls have gone around pulling every book they can find in the hopes that it'll unlock the entrance to the Bat Cave!" She laughed teasingly.

"Kazumi…!" Yuna pouted, not amused by her joke.

"Well, it's true!" Kazumi giggled. "There have always been rumors of a secret passage, but nobody knows where or even how to find the…" She paused as she saw something just on the edge of the book's inside cover. "Wait, what's this?" She closed all but the cover of the book to set eyes on the map.

"What?" asked Yuna.

"If it's what I think it is," Kazumi smiled enthusiastically, fascinated by the map. "It's something VERY interesting!"

Yuna wanted to ask why, but instead watched in silence as Kazumi examined the map, muttering something inaudible as she traced her finger through the halls and rooms, as if trying to solve a maze puzzle. Finally, as she mouthed what may have been the translation to the runes, she snapped the book shut.

"Thank you, Yuna." Kazumi said pleasantly.

"Uh?" Yuna muttered. She felt like she hadn't done anything, much less something to get thanked for. "What for?"

"I think you just found the missing piece to the puzzle."

"Great… I think…?" Yuna still couldn't understand what was going on.

"If I'm not mistaken, this map may very well point the way to the Legendary Deck of Caelum." Kazumi clarified. "I'll look more into this later tonight; hopefully, we'll have an adventure on our hands soon."

"Adventure?" Yuna repeated.

However, before she could ask what Kazumi was talking about, Yuna's eyes caught a familiar face sitting down at a nearby table; it was Akira, the third year who had helped Yuna find her way to GDS when she'd first arrived. Unlike when they'd first met though, Akira looked quite anxious and embarrassed; practically unrecognizable from the confident, upbeat young woman Yuna first met, where it not for her distinctive eyes.

"What is it, Yuna?" Kazumi asked, taking notice that her underclassman was getting distracted. She turned in the direction that Yuna was looking, and just managed to see Akira before she hid her embarrassed face behind a book. "Oh-ho, now this is an interesting development~!"

"Huh?" Yuna blinked.

"You've seen some of the… intimate activities that happen here in the library, haven't you?" Kazumi asked as she watched Akira with amusement.

"Mhm…" Yuna nodded. She had wanted to avoid the question, but since Kazumi brought it up, it was one she wanted answered; the library seemed to her like the last place to be doing things like that.

"Well, as you're no doubt aware, GDS encourages love and comradery amongst its students," Kazumi grinned, walking around behind Yuna to to wrap her arms around her shoulders, crouching slightly so that she stood at the same level Yuna was sitting. "Many who have been here long enough take such love quite seriously." She whispered huskily into Yuna's ear, making the young girl's heart leap.

"And although GDS has no rules against students having relationships with one another, teachers don't particularly enjoy students getting too… 'Expressive' out in the open. So…" She watched as another girl joined Akira's table; a slim, athletic girl with short, messy red hair, and noticeably dark skin tone. She gave Akira a big bear hug that threatened to make her fall out of her chair. "This is a favorite spot for lovers to rendezvous."

"R-really…?" Yuna blushed, watching as the red-haired girl gave Akira a big passionate kiss, while groping Akira's breast. Even though the 'passion' they expressed for one another was too intense for her, Yuna couldn't take her eyes off the couple.

"Awfully bold, isn't she?" Kazumi remarked with an amused chuckle.

"Mhm…." Yuna mumbled. Although, she found it ironic that Kazumi was making such a remark, when she was also hugging Yuna from behind, poised like she was ready to do so much more…

"Have you ever found someone you've been attracted to?" Kazumi asked, looking over Yuna's shoulder to look her in the eyes.

"Uh?" Yuna blushed. "Ah, n-no, not really."

"Oh? Well, what about that girl Reiko?" asked Kazumi. "It sounds to me like you two have a thing going~." She giggled as Yuna looked to be even more flustered.

"N-no, we're… not like that!" She squeaked, quickly shutting her mouth as she realized that she had said this louder than she'd meant to. "Uhm…. She and I are just really good friends." She whispered. "We've known each other since we were really little, so…"

"Sounds to me like the perfect couple~." Kazumi teased. "Honestly, I'm a little jealous." Having too much fun teasing Yuna, she grabbed her ear between her lips, and pulled playfully.

"Eep!?" Yuna squealed, wriggling in reaction to Kazumi's bizarre show of affection.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't resist…" Kazumi teased. "You're just so cute, I thought it'd be fun to tease you a little, so…" She giggled at Yuna's confused face.

Following this tease was a long, awkward silence; one that for some reason made Yuna feel deeply uncomfortable, not helped at all by the fact that Kazumi had drawn herself in closer to her, as if ready for a kiss….

Thankfully, the tense silence was disrupted by a sudden, loud yelp followed by a deep thud. Everybody's head was turned to the source of the disruption: A small girl who had slipped and fallen off of the stepstool she had been given to reach a high shelf.

"S-sorry…." She squeaked as she shrank back into the aisle, highly aware of the fact that all eyes in the library were locked onto her.

Kazumi turned her attention away from the sudden distraction. "Now then, where were we, Yuna…?" She broke off, as she found the seat where Yuna was sitting to be empty. "Yuna?"

* * *

Acting on impulse, Yuna slipped away from Kazumi while she was still distracted. She dashed out the library in an anxious, blind rush.

 _"What was she doing?"_ She thought, touching her earlobe where Kazumi had 'bit' her, her legs carrying her autonomously through the woods. _"And why did she take me there? To that… 'Secret Garden?' Did she really need my help with Caelum, or… whatever it was? Or was that just an excuse to…?"_ Her head was quickly filled with the suggestive images of girls kissing one another, and touching each other in lewd places…

"No, no, she wouldn't do that…." Yuna blurted out as she tried to vigorously shake the thoughts out of her head. "…would she?"

Thoughts of Kazumi, of Caelum, of the Secret Garden, of GDS…. So much was rushing through Yuna's head at that moment, that she could hardly see two feet in front of herself, and tripped over a root, hitting the ground hard.

For a long time, all she could do was lay on the ground panting, her front hurting from the impact of her fall. She rolled over onto her back, and looked up at the sky blankly. At that point, her mind had turned from hectic and overwhelmed, to hazy and unfocused; she tried to remember what she was doing just moments ago, and couldn't recall a thing before charging blindly into the woods. And why was she here of all places again….?

Then, everything that happened in the past few minutes had played back through her head like a video tape; Kazumi explaining Caelum and her legendary deck; telling her the nature of the Secret Garden; expressing her affection, Yuna's panicked escape...

"I'm sorry, Kazumi…" She sighed as she tried to pull herself back together. She wasn't thinking straight before, but now, she understood that running away like she did was a wild overreaction to something she could have easily resolved in a more rational manner.

She turned back the way that she had come, ready to go back and apologize to Kazumi, but just then,

"I don't know how it is you wormed your way into Kazumi's lap," The path ahead of her had been blocked by three girls who all looked down on Yuna with contempt. "But for your sake, you'd better leave her alone from now on!"

The girl who spoke was a tall, stern young woman with long, silver white hair that flowed down to her waist, her eyes a deep, piercing blue, and commanded respect. Behind her stood two other girls that stood on either side of her like body guards… or soldiers.

"Wh-what do you mean?" asked Yuna, genuinely confused, and intimidated.

"Feigning ignorance will get you nowhere." The white-haired girl snapped. "Kazumi is a woman who everyone at this fine academy respects and admires more than any other. Many have tried to express their undying love and affection for her, many have hoped to gain her love in return for years." She advanced on Yuna, who slowly backed away nervously.

"And yet, a dull, talentless, pathetic excuse for a duelist has had her attention since the day she transferred! You have done NOTHING to earn Kazumi Yuunagi's love, and yet, in just a week you've spent more time with her than some have had in almost six years!"

Yuna staggered backward in surprise; never before had she encountered this kind of upfront hostility from one of her fellow students.

"And don't think for a moment that I haven't seen you two smooching around in the Secret Garden!" The white-haired girl continued, now bearing down on Yuna. "You can count on one hand how many girls have had such the privilege of meeting with Kazumi there…"

"We weren't smooching!" Yuna blurted, now blushing. "S-she wanted me to help her find…!"

"Quiet!" The white-haired girl commanded. Yuna could tell this one word was enough for this girl to silence anybody, as she herself flinched, and immediately went silent off upon such an order.

"She's barely worth your time, Kisa." One of the girls standing sentinel scoffed. "Look at her; such a coward, I bet she'd run away right now if she wasn't scared stiff!"

Kisa ignored her lackey's remark, her gaze transfixed on Yuna. Much like Kazumi, Kisa's eyes seemed to have a certain immobilizing effect on her, but whereas Kazumi's gaze felt hypnotic, Kisa's felt more akin to frightful; as if she were frozen in fear.

Yuna was totally speechless. She hadn't done anything to this girl, and yet she was bearing down on her like this?

"Yuna!" She whirled around to see her friends running towards her. "What are you doing out here?"

"Reiko? Hotaru?" Yuna blinked. "How did you find me here?"

"We were on our way to the library to look for you." Hotaru replied.

"Better question." Reiko interjected. "Who are YOU," She pointed directly at Kisa. "And what the hell do you think you're doing bearing down on our friend?"

"My name is Kisa Ran, and your friend needs to learn her place in this school." Kisa stated sharply. She showed off a badge pinned to the breast of her jacket opposite the winged emblem of GDS: A silver sword with a dark blue hilt bearing the visage of an intimidating monster with red eyes.

"An Obelisk student." Hotaru observed.

"A what?" Yuna and Reiko asked together.

"One of the top-ranking students of Akademia." Hotaru explained. "It's a highly strict dueling academy, where all its students undergo far more harsh training, and are divided by rank. Kisa here bears the emblem of Obelisk Blue: The most elite rank of Akademia."

"Oh, I'm not just any ordinary member of Obelisk Blue," Kisa sneered. "This," She indicated the sword-shaped crest. "Is the crest of the Swords of Obelisk: Only the four greatest in the Obelisk Blue rank may bear this rank. Do you understand now, Yuna Yozora? Kazumi is GDS's most elite student, so only a duelist of her caliber deserves her loving hand."

"What?!" Yuna, Reiko, and Hotaru all said together.

Kisa thrust out a hand, and pointed her finger directly at Yuna's nose. "You will duel me." She ordered. "I've got the Center Court booked for after classes. Be there!"

"Whoa! Seriously?!" Reiko said with excitement as Kisa and her entourage walked away. "The Center Court? I thought only teachers could book that arena!"

"And nobody just books the Center Court for no reason." Hotaru muttered as she, Reiko, and Yuna left for their own class. "She planned this."

Yuna could do nothing but sigh, wondering how she ended up in such a mess.

 **To Be Continued...**

* * *

 **Alright, so there's obviously a duel coming next chapter, so I felt it only fitting to remind you all that this series is set in the Arc-V universe, and therefore will not be following the "New Master Rules", or the new field layout and rule set created by and for VRAINS. This means that the Pendulum Zones are still separate Zones from the Spell/Trap Zones, there's no Extra Monster Zones, and of course, no Link Monsters will be utilized.**

 **However, with that being said, I gotta say that I'm happy with VRAINS, partially because not every episode feels the need to include a duel; something I find very encouraging for my own series :) I don't intend to keep to a predictable pattern, where one chapter has no duel, followed by a chapter with a duel, and so-on, but I do feel that sometimes, it's good to just have a story, rather than inserting a needless duel, just because it's a Yu-Gi-Oh tradition. That being said, I understand that the duels are what sets this story apart from Strawberry Panic, so it's not like I find them completely unwanted, either XD.**

 **Anyways, on one final note: In addition to Yuna's duel with Kisa, next chapter will finally give Asuka and Juri Yuki a proper introduction! (Oh, and yes, "Juri" is exactly who you think she is, especially if you've read a certain GX gender-bender fic of mine ;P)**

 **See you then!**


	4. Fourth Challenge

**Love and Duels in Full Bloom**

 **Fourth Challenge**

* * *

After classes had concluded, and much of the gym had begun to clear out, Yuna's heart was pounding as she walked through the corridor, on her way to the Center Court. She had been challenged by a hostile, elitist girl known as Kisa Ran, and as far as she knew, there was no backing out of such a challenge.

With her friends by her sides, she entered the massive doors into the Center Court, and gasped in awe. The arena was gigantic, easily dwarfing the one that Yuna had dueled Alice in. Unlike the other courts, this one was situated outside, and was outlined with several lines of seating, clearly intended for seating a massive audience, along with a commentator's box above the main entrance. Obviously, the Center Court was one used for big events at this school.

"Wow, very impressive." Hotaru marveled.

"Think she chose a big enough arena for her challenge?" Reiko rolled her eyes.

As Yuna made her way down the stands, it was to find Kisa already waiting for her, standing at attention in preparation for her opponent's arrival.

"So, you actually showed." She said, her cold blue eyes looking up as Yuna entered the arena. Yuna nodded plainly, equipping her duel disk. However, Kisa stopped her: "Before we begin, as per the Declaration of Challenge, you must choose one card that you will relinquish to me, should you lose."

"What?" Yuna gasped, feeling as if such was incredibly unfair.

"As such, I will also relinquish a card if I should lose as well." Kisa continued. "However, as the one who declared such a challenge, I order that we each wager TWO cards! …Such as those Pendulum Cards that you had obtained from Kazumi."

"Eh?" Yuna froze. "How did you know about those?"

"In exchange," Kisa ignored Yuna's question. "I will wager THESE." She held up two cards, and Yuna gasped in disbelief.

"What are they?" Hotaru wondered, unable to see what cards Kisa wagered.

"Whatever they are, they must be powerful ones." Reiko observed, seeing Yuna's reaction.

"Finally, if you lose, then you will also give up any right to relationship with Kazumi," Kisa pressed on, equipping a blue duel and silvery white duel disk, igniting to form a bright, white blade in the shape of a sword. "If you win, however, I'll accept and support your place by her side."

"Now that's a very different duel disk…" Reiko commented.

"Akademia issued." Hotaru nodded. "'A duelist is a warrior; your disk is your shield…'"

"…and your deck is your sword!'" Kisa finished the mantra. "Activate Action Field: Valley of the Dragons!"

As the Solid Vision projector engaged, smooth, flat terrain of the dueling court transformed into a rocky gorge, with a very high stone wall ascending from the ground. Yuna looked up in surprise as she heard a distant, echoing roar overhead, to see dozens of dragons flying overhead.

 _"_ _It doesn't matter how many times I see it, the things that can be done in an Action Duel are amazing!"_ Yuna thought.

"DUEL!"

 **Yuna: 4000**

Kisa: 4000

"I'll go first." Yuna said. "For my first move… I summon one monster in face-down defense mode. I'll also set another card face down, and end my turn."

Kisa rolled her eyes silently as she drew; setting face-downs like this was a desperate move. To see her do this right out of the gate…

"My turn." She declared as she drew. "I'll begin by activating the spell Nobleman of Crossout: this will banish one monster in face-down Defense mode."

Yuna gasped, unnerved that her one defense had disintegrated.

"And I continue by setting two cards face-down. And activate Heavy Storm, destroying all Spells and Traps on the field."

Yuna covered her eyes as dust flew up, and her face-down card was disintegrated.

"Ha! What an idiot!" Reiko laughed derisively. "Hey! Little Ms. Perfect! You're supposed to set your face-downs AFTER you play Heavy Storm!"

Kisa, however, smirked as a pair of sinister, golden serpentine creatures emerged from the remains of her destroyed cards.

"The hell?!" Reiko blurted out, puzzled. "Where did THOSE things come from?"

"Those two face-down cards Kisa set and then destroyed were called Statue of the Wicked." Hotaru explained. "And each one Special Summons a Wicked Token when destroyed."

"And now," Kisa continued. "I'm going to tribute my two Wicked Tokens to summon the mightiest of dragons!"

Yuna, knowing exactly what was coming next, gasped with terror, hoping that it wouldn't have come quite so soon. Similarly, Reiko and Hotaru's jaws dropped as a high roar filled the air, and Kisa's field shone, as a sleek, silvery white dragon with piercing blue eyes came to life before her.

"Behold! The Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" (ATK: 3000)

"That's impossible!" Reiko yelled. "There's only three of those in the entire world!"

"Well apparently, Kisa has one of them." Hotaru remarked. "And I'm understanding now how it is that she became a Sword of Obelisk."

"Blue-Eyes White Dragon! Attack Yuna directly!" Kisa commanded. " _Burst Stream of Destruction!_ "

Yuna didn't even have time to react to the incoming attack; no time to think of a counter strategy, no time to find an Action Card…. She screamed as she was blown off her feet by a gigantic white blast of lightning from Blue-Eyes' mouth, and rolled helplessly across the field as she hit the ground.

 **Yuna: 4000 – 1000**

"Yuna!" Reiko exclaimed, jumping out of her seat. "A-are you okay?!" She rushed to the end of the stands, ready to jump in and help her friend, just as Yuna sat up weakly, clearly still feeling the sting of the attack.

"Don't get back up." Kisa warned her seriously. "You've already lost."

Yuna was hurting significantly, both from being caught in the worst of Blue-Eyes' blast, and from hitting the ground. But that pain was nothing compared to the demoralization that she was now experiencing; just as the duel was beginning, she was already on her last life points, and the way Kisa acted, those points would not be long for this duel.

She picked up the cards that made up her hand that had scattered in the attack, hoping that one of them would be able to help her combat the Blue-Eyes White Dragon; two low-level monsters, a Spell, and…

 _"_ _Blue Moon Mage… one of the Pendulum Monsters that Kazumi gave me."_ She remembered her duel with Alice just a few days ago; she had summoned a tremendous, powerful monster that, at the time, seemed impossible to defeat, and yet, with the help of this monster and its counterpart, she won almost instantly.

 _"_ _Maybe… just maybe… if I can draw Red Sun Mage…!"_ Yuna stood up, feeling confident in spite of her unnerving situation, and pulled her next card with every ounce of will she could muster.

"Oh, this is…!" She gasped. The card she drew was not Red Sun Mage, but what she did have was plenty useful enough that she could make due.

* * *

 _-Earlier that day-_

After classes had dismissed for the day, Yuna made a beeline directly for the school card store; before now, she had never actually gone into this shop, but she had passed by it enough times to remember where to find it.

Yuna grinned as she stepped inside, quickly reminded of the card shop that she and her friends regularly visited at home. It was a small, simple shop whose shelves and racks were lined with different sorts of card packages and dueling accessories. A pair of students were running the shop; one a small, first year junior who was stocking one of the shelves with starter decks, and the other a third year junior who looked somewhat bored as she sat behind the counter.

"What should I even get?" Yuna wondered aloud. "So many to choose from…" She dug out her wallet, only to remember that it was completely empty. "Not that I could afford a single booster pack anyways…" She sulked.

"We gotcha covered!" Reiko grinned. She and Hotaru picked out a pair of green packs off of a rack, and handed them to the girl at the counter.

"Hotaru! Reiko! No, don't…" Yuna groaned. She felt guilty about the idea of her friends wasting money on her.

"No objections." Reiko said flatly, paying for one of the packs herself, while Hotaru did the same for the other. "You're going to take the cards inside these packs, and you're going to use them to kick that elitist snob's rich, well-toned ass!" She thrust the packs into Yuna's hand. "Ya got it?"

With reluctance, Yuna sighed, and accepted her friends' offer.

"Thank you, guys." She smiled. She tore open the first pack, and her eyes widened at the very first card she saw….

* * *

"I activate Ancient Rules!" Yuna declared. "This card allows me to Special Summon a Level 5 or above Normal Monster from my hand. I special summon Spiral Serpent!" A spiraling torrent of water shot up from the ground, from which a massive serpentine sea monster arose, with a high roar (ATK: 2900).

"Now, attack! Spiral Wave!"

"Your monster has fewer ATK though." Kisa pointed out, certain Yuna made a rookie mistake, her Blue-Eyes prepared to counter the weaker attack.

"That's why I activate the Quick-Play Spell Rush Recklessly!" Yuna intercepted. "This raises my monster's ATK by 700!" (Spiral Serpent ATK: 2900 – 3600)

Kisa gritted her teeth, disgusted by the idea of losing a single life point to Yuna. She jumped up onto Blue-Eyes' back, and the legendary white dragon took off into the sky, while Spiral Serpent continued its attack.

"Ah, come on!" Reiko growled. "Why doesn't she just take a hit already?!"

"Monster destruction and life point damage doesn't take place until the attack actually lands." Hotaru pointed out. "Kisa's looking to get an Action Card." She observed, as Kisa guided Blue-Eyes.

However, Spiral Serpent flew into the air after them, Yuna on its back.

"This monster can fly?!" Yuna gasped, surprised.

That monster can fly?!" Reiko marveled.

Kisa gritted her teeth, eager to get away quick enough to grab the Action Card she was looking for, but Spiral Serpent pursued, and shot another blast of pressurized water, destroying the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

Kisa: 4000 – 3400

With her mount destroyed, Kisa started falling rapidly towards the ground.

"Oh no!" Yuna cried. "Spiral Serpent! Go save her!"

Her monster also went into freefall, and just as Kisa reached out a hand, her eyes spotting an Action Card dropped by one of the dragons soaring overhead, Yuna caught her out of the air, breaking her long fall.

"That was close…" She panted as Spiral Serpent stopped in mid-air. "Are you okay?"

Kisa blushed as she looked up into Yuna's smiling face _"I… never realized how cute she…"_ Just then, she remembered that she was being held in Yuna's arms, and her temporary entrancement turned to disgust.

"Get OFF me!" She growled, forcing herself to her feet, and breaking out of Yuna's hold. "I didn't ask you to help me!" Indignant, she jumped off of Spiral Serpent's back, and snatched an Action Card from the talon of a soaring dragon.

"I activate the Action Card Draco Revival! I can Special Summon one Dragon-type monster from my graveyard. And with only one Dragon monster in my grave, you know who's returning!"

A familiar high roar reverberated across the canyon, and the legendary White Dragon swept up Kisa, and flew her to the same level as Yuna, her arms crossed as she stood across from her.

"Finish your turn." She commanded.

"I-I end my turn." Yuna conceded, no other cards she could play right now. "And Rush Recklessly's effect also ends."

(Spiral Serpent ATK: 3600 – 2900)

"Then now, it's over." Kisa declared. She didn't even glance at the card she drew at the opening of her turn; she didn't need it. "I activate Dragon Heart. By sending three Dragon monsters from my deck to my graveyard, I have Blue-Eyes gain 1000 ATK!"

(Blue-Eyes White Dragon ATK: 3000 – 4000)

"Now destroy Spiral Serpent! Burst Stream of Destruction!"

When her monster was destroyed, Yuna screamed as she went into a fall, completely helpless to stop her descent.

Yuna: 1000 – 0

 **Winner: Kisa**

As the Action Field began to slowly vanish, Blue-Eyes touched down on the ground before also disappearing, Kisa jumping off its back, and walked towards the exit to the court.

"What are you doing?!" Reiko growled, running down from the stands. "Help her!"

Kisa stopped, and glanced up at Yuna, who was still falling. She ignored Yuna, and continued to walk toward the exit.

Reiko was ready to run up and punch Kisa as hard as she possibly could as she vaulted the railing, and ran across the court, but she knew Yuna was more important. She went into a drop in mid-run, sliding across the floor on her knees just in time to catch Yuna in her arms.

"You okay?" She asked, relieved to see her friend was okay. Yuna, panting, still frozen in fear from her high freefall, could only nod at Reiko, wishing she could find the words to thank her close friend.

"I'm glad." Reiko sighed with relief. She looked up at Kisa with contempt.

"What the hell was that!?" Surprisingly, it was Hotaru, not Reiko, who gave this outburst. "Why didn't you help her? You easily could have, and you know it!"

"She lost the duel." Kisa replied plainly. "Any penalty she suffers is entirely hers to bear."

"That kind of fall could have injured her severely, or worse." Hotaru growled.

"And at the Akademia, you would be looked down upon for saving her, and standing up for her." Kisa retorted.

"Well this isn't Akademia, is it?" Reiko countered.

"Your cards." Kisa said shortly, a hand outstretched.

"Uh…?" Yuna muttered blankly. She had been so shook up by her fall, she'd forgotten that…

"You wagered two cards against two of mine." Kisa stated. "And you've lost the duel, so hand them over."

Yuna slowly pulled her deck from her now inactive duel disk, but merely stared at the backing, feeling deeply discomforted not only because she lost the duel; one she didn't even want to partake in, but that she'd been forced to give up two cards that Kazumi had given her; cards she also didn't want to wager or part with in any way…

Kisa, impatient with her fallen foe, snatched the deck out of Yuna's hand, and searched for the cards in question for herself, all the while eyeing her deck as a whole with derision.

"You dealt me life point damage with a pathetic deck like THIS?" She grunted. After finding the Pendulum cards she was searching for, Kisa walked away, and threw Yuna's deck aside disrespectfully. "You have no place being near Kazumi, and you never will."

* * *

As the sun began to set and the gym closed for the night, Asuka and Juri Yuki did their final routine inspections before locking up. As expected, all of the dueling courts were empty, as all of the students had left for the night. However, they were surprised to find that the Center Court was still occupied.

"Who's in here?" Juri asked aloud as she went inside.

Reiko and Hotaru flinched as they looked up at the married women.

"What are you still doing in here?" asked Asuka. "The dueling courts are now closed. You should get back to your…" She broke off as she looked down at Yuna, who sat curled up on the floor, her face hidden behind her bangs, her cards strewn across the floor around her. "…What happened here?"

Yuna, crushed by her defeat, couldn't respond.

"What happened here?" Asuka repeated.

"She'd lost her cards." Hotaru responded. "Kisa Ran challenged her, and she lost…"

"Not just 'lost'. Damn near fell to her death, too." Reiko growled.

"Is she okay?" Juri gasped, hurrying to Yuna's aid.

"She's alright, but she's been like… this for over an hour now." Reiko explained, indicating Yuna.

"You two should return to your dorms." Asuka suggested as she gathered up Yuna's deck. "We'll take good care of Ms. Yozora." She nodded to Juri, who lifted Yuna up over her shoulder.

"But…" Reiko wanted to object.

"I think you've missed curfew enough times this semester, Ms. Ryugamine." Asuka spoke over her, though with a hint of teasing in her voice.

"Don't worry." Juri smiled. "Yuna is in good hands. She'll be okay."

With reluctance, Reiko and Hotaru exited the Center Court, leaving Yuna in the teachers' capable hands.

Yuna was carried to the school's infirmary, which, much like the rest of the school at this time, was empty, everyone having left for the day. Juri set Yuna down on one of the beds, and removed the duel disk from her wrist, inspecting her equipment for any possible damage.

Although she was somewhat familiar with Asuka, Yuna had never met Juri before. She was a tomboyish woman, with shoulder-length two-tone brunette hair, and brown eyes that matched her darker hair color. She dressed rather casually, compared to the more formal clothing commonly seen at GDS; a red jacket over a sleeveless black shirt, with dark grey skirt, and a bright red neck scarf. As Juri set her duel disk down on a bedside table, Yuna also noticed a silver ring on her finger; one matching a ring worn by Asuka…

"Are you hurt anywhere, Ms. Yozora?" asked Asuka warmly. Yuna simply shook her head. This was a dishonest gesture, however; she could indeed still feel the sting of being hit by not just one, but two, blasts from the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. And that wasn't even to mention the emotional pain she felt; losing Red Sun and Blue Moon Mages, being so derided by the cruel Kisa….

"That's good." Asuka smiled, glad to know that Yuna wasn't seriously harmed. And yet, she knew her student wasn't being completely honest… "Unfortunately, during an Action Duel, injuries taking place are entirely possible."

Yuna nodded silently, knowing full well that having fallen as far as she had, she very easily could have been in a lot of pain, had Reiko not jumped in to save her.

"I need you to tell us exactly what happened." said Asuka.

"Hotaru mentioned that you'd lost your cards." Juri assisted, handing Yuna her deck. "Do you know what cards have been stolen?"

Yuna knew exactly what cards had been taken, but she slid each of the cards in her deck through her fingers, looking over each one, before she responded:

"Not stolen." She finally found her voice. "They were… wagered."

She told Juri and Asuka everything about Kisa's challenge, and the duel that followed.

"How heartless of her." Juri grumbled when Yuna had finished her story.

"That was quite inappropriate." Asuka frowned in agreement. "Additionally, our Action Fields are equipped with safety protocols to prevent any severe injuries like you might have suffered, had Ms. Ryugamine not been there."

"There are?" Yuna blinked. "But didn't you say before…?"

"Action Duels are a very physical sport." Juri clarified. "So, sometimes, minor injuries can happen, and on some rare occasions, they can be inevitable."

"But all of our Academy's Action Fields are designed with safeguards in place to prevent any serious injuries," Asuka explained. "Your fall should have been broken by one such safeguard." She sighed, still frowning at the situation.

"You don't think…?" Juri was thinking the same thing as Asuka.

"It is possible that the systems simply malfunctioned, or that it was nothing more than a glitch. Defects can happen once in a while. However…"

"Yeah," Juri nodded. "The implications here aren't pleasant."

"Not pleasant at all." Asuka shook her head.

"What do you mean?" asked Yuna curiously. She was afraid of whatever the answer might be, but regardless felt the need to ask.

"Never mind that right now." Asuka shook her head. "Tomorrow, we'll be sure to talk to Ms. Ran the first chance we get, and make sure she's not responsible for anything dangerous."

"In the meantime, you should return to your dorm." said Juri. "I'll escort you there, so that Mother Tenma doesn't yell at you."

"Thank you." Yuna grinned sheepishly, recalling just that happening when she first arrived at GDS. "Thank you both."

"You can always come to either of us if you have any troubles." Asuka smiled.

The walk to the dorms was a quiet one; uncomfortably so, Yuna thought.

"You okay, Yuna?" asked Juri. "You're awfully quiet. Is there something on your mind?"

Yuna carefully considered her words before replying.

"Am I in trouble?" she asked. Juri looked down at her with an amused grin.

"What?" She chuckled.

"Well…Ante Duels are prohibited, aren't they?" Yuna said sheepishly. "And I'm late for curfew, so…"

"No, Yuna, you're not in trouble." Juri smiled. "Ante Duels are frowned upon, but not necessarily 'prohibited'. Although, it's obvious that you didn't want any part of this particular duel."

"No…" Yuna muttered weakly. From her first day, Yuna felt uneasy, nervous, like she was not worthy to be dueling here at such an elite school. Now, she felt helpless, and weak, as if she should have never come here to begin with.

Her expression of melancholy did not go unnoticed by Juri as she unlocked the dorm's front gate. She smiled and patted Yuna's shoulder as they walked inside.

"Hey, don't feel so bad!" She said brightly. "Nobody can win every duel, y'know."

"I know that," Yuna sulked. "I'm not upset that I lost; it's what I lost; how helpless I was…" Juri nodded, feeling a little sorry for coming off as insensitive.

"I'm sorry. But you know… that means that now you have a sweet victory to work towards!" She said enthusiastically.

"What do you mean?" Yuna asked, lost to her teacher's reasoning.

"Well, now you've got something to work towards." Juri explained. "You know that you want to get stronger no matter what, right?" Yuna nodded. "Now, you know why, and how to do it. And when you do finally duel Kisa again, winning will be all the greater." She stopped and knelt to stand eye-level with Yuna. "You can beat her, and I know that one day, you will." She wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"Thank you, Mrs. Yuki." Yuna smiled weakly.

"Yup." Juri nodded. "Go get some rest, Yuna. I know you could use it."

Yuna, still stressed and worn from facing Kisa, agreed, and headed up the stairs to her room, just as Juri met up with Mother Tenma, spinning a yarn to her about how Yuna was held up because helping her clean up around the gym.

When she returned to her dorm, Yuna immediately let herself collapse onto her bed, her mind still swimming with the thought of her recent, disastrous duel, and the cruel things Kisa had said to her. She could still hear her, as if she was right in front of her:

 _"_ _You have no place being near Kazumi. And you never will."_

She changed into her pajamas, but before she could get into bed, she looked to Reiko, who was watching Yuna, though trying to do so while pretending to be asleep.

"Reiko? Are you awake?"

"Yeah. Something up?"

Yuna was always grateful to have a friend like Reiko; she loved to have someone she could speak with intimately. However, as she tried to talk with her old friend, Yuna found the words getting stuck in her throat.

"You can talk to me, Yuna." Reiko smiled. "I'm here for you."

Yuna swallowed, and let her words spill out of her mouth: "Can I sleep in your bed tonight?"

"…Sure." Reiko was surprised by this question, but perfectly understanding and willing. She scooted back to make room for Yuna, and invited her over as she pulled back the covers. "C'mere."

Yuna turned out the lights as she climbed into bed with Reiko, hugging onto her.

"R-Reiko? Thank you." Before Reiko could reply, she heard Yuna softly begin to cry, as she held her friend even closer. "Th-thank you…"

"You're welcome." Reiko knew what Yuna was really thanking her for, and pulled her into a warm embrace. "You're going to be okay." She whispered, instinctively planting a kiss on Yuna's forehead. "Okay?"

 **To Be Continued…**

* * *

 **Well… this turned out much more depressing than I'd intended for it to be. Next time, we'll hopefully have something a bit more fluffy and light-hearted in store.**

 **See you then!**


	5. Fifth Hero

**Hoo boy, this chapter has been quite a journey. It's been so long, because it's changed so many times over the course of writing it, to the point that the end result is not at all what I'd initially planned… not that that's a particularly bad thing.**

 **Anyways, something I feel the need to address real quick, before beginning the story: GDS has two different age groups: the Junior Class, for middle school-aged students, and the Senior Class, for high school-aged students.**

 **I want to bring this up to avoid confusion, since the names of these age groups are different in the Japanese version of Arc-V, which I'm going off of; Junior is referred to as "Junior Youth", and Senior as "Youth". I don't like these names, and they've caused me some confusion (They sound like they should be one age group younger each), so I'm referring to them as Junior and Senior.**

 **Anyways, on with the chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

Mornings had always been the most difficult part of the day for Yuna. Maybe it was because she wasn't very good at starting anything, much less her day, or maybe it was because of her odd sleeping habits. Or, most likely, as her friends had quickly deduced, she was still feeling the sting of her disastrous defeat at the hands of Kisa Ran.

Whatever the case, Yuna's head felt heavy as she ate breakfast. She would occasionally slump, her eyes closing on their own, only for her to gain enough alertness to jump upright again… only to drowsily slump again.

"You're not sleeping well?" Hotaru sighed as she drank her coffee.

"Can' help it…." Yuna moaned, still bleary-eyed as she filled her mouth with waffle. "Iz stl so erly in th' day…"

"What did I say about talking with your mouth full?" Hotaru corrected. "I think you need something that'll wake you up properly." She handed her cup of coffee to Yuna. "Here, try this. It always puts me in a good, alert mood in the morning."

"Alright…" Yuna sighed after swallowing her food. She hadn't usually been one to drink coffee, but out of courtesy, decided to take Hotaru up on such an offer, and took a sip…

"Hm?" Reiko quickly whirled her head around as she saw a very brief, bright flash out of the corner of her eye, but seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she returned her attention to Yuna. "So? How is it?" She asked.

"Blech!" Yuna half-gagged, disgusted by the painful bitterness overwhelming her taste buds.

"I can understand you not liking it, but you didn't need to be rude about it…" Hotaru muttered indignantly as she took her cup back.

"Hey, ever get that feeling like you're being watched?" asked Reiko.

"Why?" Yuna and Hotaru said together, unsure what Reiko was talking about.

Reiko's eyes darted around the cafeteria searching for the source of the flash. "Eh, never mind…"

* * *

 **-Love and Duels in Full Bloom-**

 **Fifth Hero**

* * *

Although this was only her first year at GDS, Tsubasa Seicho had quickly become very accustomed to her morning routine at this school. While her roommate struggled to get out of bed in the morning, she had found herself waking up easily without any need for an alarm clock.

She had already been well awake, having changed into her uniform, and just finished tying her ribbon when her roommate's alarm started going off. She smiled as she looked herself over: she was small, but felt that her uniform added a mature sort of look to her. She had purple hair that felt just short of her shoulders with a short ponytail pulled off to the right side, and wide light blue eyes that were pleased by how successful she looked.

In response to the buzzing of the alarm clock, her roommate, a red-headed tomboy named Yuma Miyata, clumsily flailed one arm around, looking for the annoyance. Tsubasa sighed as she sat down to brush her hair, while Miyata slammed her hand down onto the snooze button.

"Just 5 more minutes…" Miyata groaned.

"You say that every morning." Tsubasa sighed as she pulled the right side of her hair into a short tail.

"'Kay, gimme 15 minutes then…" Miyata snored.

"What am I going to do with you…?" Tsubasa shook her head.

By the time Miyata had fully woke and she joined Tsubasa on the way to the lunchroom, it was to find many other Junior students crowded around one of the tables, squealing and shouting at a spectacle that one of the girls was showing off.

"Now, now, be patient!" They were gathered around a bookish-looking girl with chest-length green-black hair, and eyes which flashed with excitement behind a pair of thick round glasses, who was enthusiastically showing off several pictures that she had accumulated. "I've got more than enough photos of all your favorite senpais!" **(Note: For those of you who don't know, "Senpai" is a respectful term for an upperclassman)**

"Ooh! Ooh! Nagisa, tell me you've got more pictures of Akira!"

"How about Masumi?"

"Tell me you have more images of The Prince!"

"No, let's see Kazumi!"

"We've got a new senpai now, can we see any pictures of her?"

Nagisa smirked at this last request. "You're in luck~!" She grinned enthusiastically. "I've taken this picture of our newest senpai just a few few minutes ago, and I'm very proud of this one." Tsubasa and Miyata managed to wade through the crowd just in time to see Nagisa's latest photo:

The photo in question depicted a girl with shoulder-length pink hair streaked with light blue, as she drank a cup of coffee in a rather elegant posture.

"Who is she?" asked Tsubasa, eyeing the pink-haired girl with adoration.

"GDS's latest transfer, and our new senpai: Yuna Yozora of Class 4-A." Nagisa replied knowledgably. "She's adorable, isn't she?"

She grinned proudly as all of the Junior girls who bore witness this latest photo squealed delightedly at the sight of their newest upperclassman.

"Tell us you have more pictures of her!" one of the girls cried out.

"Well, she's still very recent, so not many," Nagisa admitted. "But I do indeed have more pictures." She had every gathered Juniors' undivided attention as she pulled out three more photos featuring Yuna:

The first depicted what was clearly Yuna's first arrival at GDS, as she still wore her old school's uniform, making her stand out among everyone around her donned in blue and gold.

The second showed a very red-faced Yuna being guided along the campus by another classmate her age; blonde, with a corset showing under her unzipped uniform jacket, pushing up a very ample bust, where Yuna's eyes were clearly diverted.

And the third and final picture depicted Yuna blushing as she looked up at the ever-famous Kazumi Yuunagi, who smiled pleasantly as she fixed Yuna's crooked tie.

Tsubasa eyed this last picture with great interest; although she had quickly grown accustomed to her life at GDS, the first few days felt like stepping into a whole new world, and she had gotten several corrections from teachers and older students for her attire, exactly like the one that Nagisa had captured. In addition, while she didn't possess the mature elegance of Kazumi, or the strength and energy of Akira, Yuna had a special sort of indescribable charm to her…

"She's… adorable." The words escaped Tsubasa's mouth before she fully realized what she was actually saying, and blushed as heads turned towards her at such an awkward statement.

"And here I thought you were in love with Akira?" Miyata laughed, giving her roommate a playful smack on the back. "She's gonna be heartbroken when she finds out that she's lost her #1 fan~!"

"M-Miyata!" Tsubasa blustered, embarrassed she said something like that out loud, especially as everyone giggled at her.

"Actually, I think all of Akira's fans will be heartbroken." Nagisa corrected, having overheard the two. She dug through her photos, and pulled out one that grabbed everyone's attention. "After all, it seems that she and Tia have finally confessed their love for one another!"

Sure enough, the picture, though poorly lit, depicted Akira and another girl, who was thin and muscular with bright red hair, as they kissed at a library desk.

There were many heartbroken cries among the Junior students upon viewing this photo. However, others cried with delight that this couple had finally been realized; Akira and her relations with her friends, and especially Tia, had become well known, even to the first years. Although Akira would bashfully deny any sort of relationship with Tia, claiming that they were nothing more than friends and gym partners, most in the Academy saw them as something far more.

And yet, despite having admired Akira since her first day at GDS, Tsubasa still found her attention centered on Yuna for some strange reason.

"Does Kazumi do this often?" She asked, pointing to the picture of her fixing Yuna's tie.

"Hm?" Nagisa blinked. "Uh, not that I'm aware of. She's hardly anti-social or anything, but apparently, this sort of interaction is incredibly rare for Kazumi."

"So, she's someone special to Kazumi then…?" Miyata mused.

* * *

 **-Class 4-A-**

"...However, when you're Normal Summoning a monster that's Level 5 or above, you will be required to tribute, or sacrifice, at least one monster in order to successfully summon it; an action known as a Tribute Summon."

Reiko sighed as Ms. Gollman droned on about the various methods of summoning.

"C'mon, who doesn't know this stuff?" She muttered to her friends. "This is like, Dueling 101."

"Shut up, she's going somewhere with this." Hotaru whispered.

"Can anybody tell me any other special methods of summoning?" Ms. Gollman inquired of the class.

"Uh, Special Summoning? Duh." Reiko spoke up in a bored tone, not even raising her hand first.

"And explain to the class how a Special Summon differs from a Normal Summon, Ms. Ryugamine." said Ms. Gollman. As she had anticipated, Reiko was silent, unable to give an explanation. "That's what I thought." Reiko avoided direct eye contact with anybody as the whole class laughed.

"Yes, Ms. Ran?" Ms. Gollman indicated Kisa.

"Whereas a Normal Summon may only be performed once per turn, a duelist is able to perform a potentially unlimited number of Special Summons." KIsa explained. "There are two different means of performing a Special Summon: The first is by utilizing the Effect of a Monster, Spell, or Trap. The second is performing the requirements to summon a special type of monster, traditionally one of the three Extra Deck Monster types."

"Excellently explained, as always, Ms. Ran." Ms. Gollman commended. "And it's those special monster types that we're here to discuss today."

"I told you she was going somewhere with this." Hotaru muttered to Reiko, smirking slightly.

"I knew about what the difference was between Normal and Special Summons…" Reiko grunted to herself, looking out the window in embarrassment. "Why couldn't I…?"

Ms. Gollman drew five columns on the chalk board, and turned to the class:

"There are five Special Summoning methods, and five monster types to go along with them." She continued. "Anybody want to tell me one of them?"

"Fusion Summoning." Kisa stepped up again. "While there are many methods of performing a Fusion Summon, the most common is the use of a Spell Card effect, namely that of 'Polymerization.' By sending the required Material to the graveyard, you can summon a monster greater than the sum of its parts."

"Very good." Ms. Gollman nodded. "Anybody else?" Nobody spoke up right away, most only able to think of three out of the five.

"There's also Synchro Summoning." Hotaru replied, standing. "With the use of a Tuner Monster, by tributing both it and at least one non-Tuner, you can summon a monster whose level is the total sum of the material monsters' levels. These monsters are typically very high level, and appropriately high-powered."

"That's correct." Ms. Gollman confirmed. She filled two of the five columns with the information her students listed. "Now, who can tell me a third?"

Yuna shook uncomfortably, wanting to bring up Pendulum, a type she had previously used, but her nerves locked up on her whenever she felt the temptation to speak up. And, as she reminded herself, she didn't even remember how to Pendulum Summon; she had only done so once, and didn't quite recall the precise mechanics.

"Next is Xyz, right?" Ms. Gollman looked to the door to see Akira, just as she stepped into the classroom. Many of her fans cried out with excitement that she was paying their classroom a visit.

"I'm sorry to intrude…" Akira muttered to the teacher.

"Oh, no, not at all." Ms. Gollman chuckled. "Please, explain Xyz Summoning to the class." Akira grinned, pleased to oblige.

"An Xyz Summon is performed by using two or more monsters on your field that share the same level, to summon a monster with a Rank equal to the levels of the monsters used. However, monsters tributed for an Xyz Summon are not sent to the Graveyard; rather, they become the 'Overlay Units' necessary to utilize an Xyz Monster's Effects."

"…did you catch a word of that?" Reiko whispered to Yuna, perplexed by this description.

"No way." Yuna shook her head.

"Fantastic." Ms. Gollman smiled. "But, I assume you didn't come here just to help with today's lecture, Akira."

"I was sent here to make a very important announcement to the students of Class 4-A." Akira stated to the room at large. "Every year, one student is chosen to represent the Leo Girl's Duel Academy in a 'friendly competition' against the Leo Boy's Duel academy. Normally, our representative would be a second or third year, however, in the spirit of competition, it's been decided that a first year Senior will be GDS's special representative."

The room was instantly buzzing with excitement, many boasting that it could be them representing the school they love so dearly.

"In addition," Akira continued. "The staff has elected 5 prime candidates; and, as it would happen, all of them are students of Class 4-A!" She chuckled at such a coincidence, as she pulled a piece of paper from her pocket, which she read from:

"'The prime candidates for GDS's representative in the School Duel are as follows: Kisa Ran, Alice Gollman, Reiko Ryugamine, Hotaru Hanazono, and Yuna Yozora of Class 4-A!'"

"What?!" This interjection burst out of Yuna's mouth before she could control herself.

"I'm sorry?" Akira blinked curiously at Yuna.

Yuna went very silent as all eyes fell onto her following her outburst. She didn't fully understand this 'School Duel', but it was obvious that not just any student would or could represent the academy. And her name was listed among the likes of Kisa Ran?

"Er, I-I mean…" She stuttered awkwardly. "A-are you sure there wasn't some kind of mistake, having my name on there?"

"I wouldn't know; I'm just the messenger." Akira shrugged. "But, you are unmistakably one of the prime candidates to represent the academy. As such, the headmistress has requested to meet with each of you later this week." She gave a polite bow to the teacher and then to the class. "Thank you all for your time."

When Akira had left the room, Ms. Gollman returned her attention to the lesson she had been set to teach:

"Well now, with that news, I would implore all of you pay close attention to today's lesson, most of all our five prime candidates!" She beamed up at her class, but most noticeably her younger sister, Alice.

"So, to recap, three of the five Special Summon types are: Fusion, Synchro, and Xyz. These three monster types are kept in the Extra Deck, separate from your main deck. Whereas the remaining two types are kept in your main deck. Can anybody tell me one of them?"

Many of the girls in the class subtly glanced over at Yuna; who could feel the eyes on her as she tried to recall…

"Ms. Yozora?" Ms. Gollman called out. "Do you know of any of these summoning types?"

"Ah… P-Pendulum Summon?" Yuna said as she was forced to answer. "Ah, w-well, by using two Pendulum Monsters, you can simultaneously summon a number of monsters." She swallowed, fully aware that she had given a very feeble answer, not knowing with exact certainty the mechanics of such a method.

"Very good." Ms. Gollman nodded. "Believe it or not, Pendulum Summoning was actually discovered recently, within the past few years. Now, does anybody know the fifth type?"

Nobody answered this time, some not knowing that there was a fifth type.

"Ritual." Ms. Gollman sighed. "It seems like almost nobody knows about that one… Ritual Summoning is a fairly rare summon type; they're summoned using a Ritual Spell, as well as a sacrifice of at least one monster whose total levels are equal to that of the Ritual Monster's."

"So… the same as Synchros, then?" Reiko shrugged to herself.

"I'm telling you all of these types, because they will play a very important part in your education soon." Ms. Gollman continued. "Within the coming days, you will be asked to take up at least one new class; we have 6 courses for you to choose from, one for each of the monster types listed, as well as an Advanced Course covering the mechanics you already know in greater depth, if none of these five types resonate with you." She checked the clock, to see there were only a few minutes left of class. "Now, for the rest of the class, I want you to consider which course you would like most."

"What do you guys think?" asked Yuna, uncertain herself which to take up.

"I'm thinking Fusion." Reiko grinned enthusiastically. "First, it's the only one of these types that I actually know anything about. And second, what's cooler than taking two badass monsters, and combining them into one super badass?! How about you, Hotaru?"

"I'm interested in Synchro Summoning." Hotaru answered. "There's an art to Synchros that I've always found kind of fascinating; there's something interesting to be said of taking low level, seemingly negligible monsters, and using them to create something greater than the literal sum of its parts."

"You almost sound like Kisa." Reiko teased. "'You can create a monster greater than the sum of its parts!'" She said in a mocking version of Kisa's cold monotone.

"What course would you take, Yuna?" asked Hotaru, ignoring Reiko.

Even though she heard Hotaru, Yuna remained silent, not sure what course she would take. Her first thought rested on Pendulum Summoning, but was that because she had already used Pendulums before? She didn't know what to choose, knowing little to nothing about any of these summoning types.

"Hey Yuna? Earth to Yuna?" Reiko called. "Hey! Are you in there? What summoning course are you interested in?"

"Oh, um… I-I don't know." Yuna answered honestly. "If I could, I would pick all of them…"

"Not a good idea." Alice laughed. "Tammy tried to take all of them at once when she was a student; nearly flunked the year, because it was too much for her! I understand it takes a certain kind of skill to handle that many different kinds of summon types at once."

"Do you have any course in mind?" asked Yuna.

"Actually, yeah." Alice grinned. "I was thinking of picking up Pendulum Summoning; you inspired me the other day when we dueled, and I think they would complement the Xyz in my deck nicely.

"You know Xyz?" Yuna blinked.

"You can actually understand that convoluted card type?" Reiko said.

"More importantly, though," Alice looked directly at Yuna. "How serious are you about the idea of competing in the School Duel?"

"Wha? Er, I… don't know…" Yuna looked away uncertainly.

"Now that you mentioned it," said Hotaru. "It is unusual for first years to be taking part in an event like this."

"What's the School Duel about?" asked Yuna.

"You don't know?" Everyone said at once, looking at Yuna with disbelief.

"Every year around this time, GDS chooses one student to act as the academy's representative." Alice explained. "Meanwhile, Kaiser Duel School, the boy's duel academy situated across from us, will do the same, and the two representatives will… well, compete in a duel for a special prize."

"What kind of prize?" asked Yuna.

"I'm not sure." Alice shook her head. "I understand that the winner gets whatever prize they wish, but that's just a rumor. Regardless, it's important to bear in mind too that these two schools have been rivals forever, so it's also a matter of pride and glory for each school to claim victory."

Yuna imagined herself standing victorious against a nondescript boy, being given a tremendous golden trophy, Kazumi thrusting Yuna's hand high into the air in triumph as the whole of GDS cheered for her. Then, Kazumi gave Yuna a rewarding kiss on the cheek, before turning her head to face her, moving in for another kiss…

"Why? What kind of prize do you have in mind~?" Alice teased, reading Yuna's daydream in her eyes.

"Ah, n-nothing, just… thinking of what kind of trophy or medal you'd get…" Yuna lied.

"Sure," Alice smirked sarcastically. "You know, it's not unusual to be rewarded with kisses of affection from your admirers following victory in an event like the School Duel." She reached out a hand to stroke Yuna's cheek. "And I couldn't help but notice that you've become quite the catch since you first arrived."

"Wh-where did that come from?!" Yuna swallowed, thrown off by Alice's flirtatious gesture. Reiko eyed Alice suspiciously, like she was ready to step in and stop her at a moment's notice.

"Just kidding~!" Alice laughed playfully.

"Where do you think you get off, Yuna Yozora?" Everyone when quiet as Kisa stood up to them, arms crossed as she glared down at Yuna.

Yuna didn't know how to reply, or even what Kisa was talking about…

"You're an amateur, at best; a third rate duelist, with a fourth rate deck, and yet you, of all people, are a prime candidate to be GDS's representative?"

"I'd tell you to save it for the arena," Alice spoke up. "But I heard how cutthroat you can be about Action Duels. Yuna's not the pushover you think she is; she has beaten me, after all." However, Alice knew that there was only so much merit this claim boasted; after all, she had held back against her at points, and had she gone full force, that duel might have ended differently…

Kisa eyed Alice scathingly, then returned her cold gaze onto Yuna.

"Regardless, you seem to have a way of being in positions you don't belong in, Yozora." She said. "First playing around with Kazumi, and now in the running to act as the academy's representative. You're in the presence of three duelists greatly superior to you. I suggest that you rethink your current position."

Yuna wanted so very much to stand up to her attacker, to let her know that this wasn't something she chose, but she was frozen with fear, as she could feel the might of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon itself bearing down upon her.

* * *

"You can't let everything she says get you down, y'know." Reiko assured her friend as class dismissed.

"But she's right." Yuna sighed as she followed her friends out of the classroom. "I've only been here for a few weeks, I haven't exactly wowed anyone, and now I'm in the running to be GDS's representative?"

"Most people wouldn't sweat the details, and just take advantage of the fame and glory." Reiko laughed.

"I'm curious how the candidates are chosen, though." Hotaru mused, looking again to Alice. "I had assumed it was just a matter of dueling records, but are there other factors, do you know?"

"As I understand it, the teachers put forth their own personal recommendations." Alice explained. "Undoubtedly, dueling records have much to do with their choices, but some don't let that be the singular defining factor: I've heard of them using the opportunity to promote lesser-known talent, or just playing favorites." She chuckled. "…How much you want to bet that's what Tammy's doing?" She rolled her eyes, certain her big sister teacher was the only reason she was in the running.

"So then how is the representative chosen?" asked Yuna.

"The simple answer: by picking the best and brightest of their prime candidates." Alice answered. "The not so simple answer: There are any number of ways for them to pick out who is best fit to represent the school. Anything from a full-scale battle royale, or a series of challenges devised by the staff…"

"Wait a minute," A thought suddenly came to Yuna. "Is that why Ms. Gollman was talking about these advanced Summoning methods?"

"What do you mean?" asked Reiko.

"Maybe they want us learn new tricks; see what we can learn and then put those abilities to the test against each other." Yuna reasoned.

"That's a good thought, Yuna." said Hotaru.

"Sounds like a good opportunity for someone to get noticed too." Reiko grinned.

"Then I guess that makes us all rivals now!" Alice smirked, excited for the competition. "When the time comes, we're all going to battle each other for the top spot!"

"Fine by me!" Reiko replied, also fired up.

"You two need to take it down a notch…" Hotaru rolled her eyes. "Even so…" She shrugged. "This is shaping up to be a very interesting competition, and the School Duel hasn't even started yet."

"Uh-huh…" Yuna muttered awkwardly.

"Ah, c'mon!" Reiko laughed, nudging her friend playfully. "This is the kind of rush that I live for!"

"Can't we still be friends, though…?" Yuna whimpered, not comfortable with the idea her close friends being every bit as much her enemies as Kisa.

"It's just friendly competition, Yuna." Hotaru smiled.

"Yeah, just because we're rivals doesn't mean we're enemies." Alice nodded. "…at least, not until our final battle."

"That's exactly what I'm worried about!" Yuna flustered.

"If you're too afraid of serious competition, then I would recommend you bow out of the running for school representative."

Yuna looked over her shoulder, and jumped back at the sight of three very impressive-looking older girls: One of whom had dark skin, with long, silky jet black hair and deep red eyes that gave her a smug, playful smirk. She also wore a belt with what looked like a gun holster holding her duel disk.

"Don't be a jerk, Masumi." One of the other girls half-scolded, half-laughed. "Apologies." She said to Yuna. "Masumi can be… like that." If she didn't hear her voice, which was already rather deep and husky, Yuna would have thought this one was a boy, due to her very short hair and masculine face.

Yuna said nothing, feeling incredibly small compared to these girls.

"I know you think that you didn't earn it," Akira said, stepping forward from the group. "But I really do want to congratulate you on your nomination. I hope that you do well."

"Y-yeah, so do I…" Yuna muttered anxiously.

"Hey, don't be like that." The boyish girl chuckled. "Kazumi might like to play favorites, but if she nominated you, then you're clearly much more than just a cute face."

"…Eh?" There were a lot of things in that sentence for Yuna to process; the fact that she had just been called cute, that these imposing people were implying she was something grander than she really was, that Kazumi had been the one to put her in this position…

"I'm sure you will perform tres magnifique." The boyish girl gave a soft laugh.

"…She'll what?" Reiko blinked, blindsided by her choice of words.

"Anyways, we're here to talk to you girls about your candidacy." said Akira. "By the headmistress's request, the Five Stars have been chosen to train and assess each of the five candidates chosen to be GDS's representative."

"Five Stars?" Yuna repeated.

"I pick you!" Reiko called hastily, pointing to Masumi.

"You're not exactly my first choice, but whatever…" Masumi rolled her eyes, still smirking. "But I guess you'll have to do."

"Hey, what the hell's that supposed to mean?!" Reiko said indignantly, to Masumi's continued amusement.

"You know, I'm the one who's supposed to choose the candidate, and not the other way around." Masumi pointed out. "But, I suppose you'll be more fun than Kisa." She led Reiko away.

"I've chosen to evaluate you, Hotaru." The boyish girl stated politely. "I look forward to working with you." Hotaru nodded, sharing her sentiment. "We can begin whenever you're ready."

"And you're with me, Yuna." Akira said. She led Yuna outside with an enthusiastic stride in her step.

"W-where are we going?" asked Yuna. "The dueling courts?"

"Not yet." Akira replied. "We'll begin our training tomorrow; over the next few days, I'll have four tests for you to undergo; not just to evaluate your overall dueling skills, but also to see if you possess the attributes that would make you a worthy representative."

Yuna blinked at Akira uncertainly. "Attributes? Like what?"

"I'll explain more when the time comes." said Akira. "Until then, I want you to spend today preparing your deck for the duel I have for you tomorrow. Meet me in the town square around two, and of course, bring your deck and duel disk."

* * *

Taking Akira's instructions to heart, Yuna spent the rest of the day trying to improve her deck; even during classes, she poured over her deck, and the cards that she had picked up over the past few days, in the hopes that they would improve her dueling capabilities.

"Uh, Yuna?" Hotaru whispered during Asuka Yuki's class. "Maybe it's not a good idea to be looking over your deck while Mrs. Yuki's giving a lecture."

Yuna barely heard Hotaru, as she looked back and forth between a bunch of new cards in her hands, and the cards in her deck laid out on her desk.

"Yeah, I think she's noticed you're not paying attention." Reiko muttered. "I mean, at least have a book propped up, so it LOOKS like you're following along."

"I have to fix my deck." Yuna replied absent-mindedly. "It'll do nothing but lose as it is right now."

"She's coming this way…!" Reiko whispered. Yuna, too wrapped up in her deck work, didn't hear Reiko, and only looked up when Asuka was standing directly over her.

"We'll talk after class." She stated. "Until then, please put your deck away, and follow along." She sighed, returning to her lecture. With reluctance, Yuna gathered up all of her cards and put them away. Although she tried to pay more attention to Asuka's lesson, she couldn't help but center her thoughts instead on building her deck; since she couldn't physically work on it, she instead looked it over in her mind.

 _"…_ _Now, I have one copy of Ancient Rules, but I know that's not enough; I'll need at least one more… and maybe Cost Down? Or, do I need less high-level monsters? No, I NEED those high-level monsters, or else if I'm dueling a monster with high ATK, I won't stand a chance…."_

She started to lock up as she imagined herself with only the weakest of her monsters faced with the colossal Blue-Eyes White Dragon; even more so as lighting sparked in its mouth….

"Yuna?" Reiko patted her friend's shoulder, worried for her. "Yuna, are you okay?" Yuna only gave a little nod in response; her anxiety attack didn't go unnoticed by Asuka.

 _"_ _Poor Yuna."_ She thought, while pressing on with her lesson. _"I'm sure this is a lot of pressure for you right now. Luckily, I may know how to help."_

After class had ended, Yuna stayed behind as Asuka had requested.

"I'm sorry," Yuna said automatically, certain she was in big trouble. "I-I've got a big test coming up, and my deck needs…"

"Relax, Yuna." Asuka said calmly. "You're not in trouble, I just want to talk to you. I understand your situation, and I may know how to help you."

"Y-you… you do?" Yuna blinked.

"Come with me." Asuka smiled. She led Yuna out of the classroom. "You're testing to be the school's representative, and you want to make sure your deck is the best it can be, right?" She observed.

"Uh-huh."

"Well, I may have a solution to offer you." Asuka grinned.

* * *

Tsubasa hummed softly to herself as she diligently swept the floor of the academy's card shop, while also looking over the shelves, to make sure that everything was stocked and neatly organized. She smiled proudly at the work that she had accomplished so far as she swept all of the dirt into a dustpan, which she emptied in a nearby trashcan.

"Hey, c'mon. Save some work for the rest of us." Juri chuckled, laying across the front counter in a bored slump. Tsubasa gave a sheepish little laugh, just as the door opened, and Asuka entered, looking over the shop.

"It looks really nice, Tsubasa." She smiled, giving her an approving nod.

"Thank you, Mrs. Yuki!" Tsubasa blushed as she beamed at Asuka, satisfied that her work had paid off.

Asuka then looked to her lazy wife, who was still slumped across the front counter. "And you wonder why our teachers always called you 'Slacker.'" She sighed teasingly.

"What? Tsubasa really stepped up to the plate." Juri shrugged. "She didn't exactly leave me with very much left to do but man the counter."

"Well, anyway," Asuka rolled her eyes in amusement. "Luckily for you, we've found another volunteer. You can man the store for a while, right, Yuna?"

"Wha…?" Tsubasa gasped. She was certain at first that she heard wrong, but sure enough, the latest senpai of Class 4-A followed Asuka into the shop. Tsubasa's heart skipped a beat as she marveled at the idea at working with her new senpai.

"Uh, yeah…" Yuna blinked. "…what do I do? How does this help…?"

"We often have students to volunteer shifts working the card store." Asuka explained. "Nothing too difficult; just keep the store tidy, make sure shelves are stocked, manage the register, that kind of thing. In exchange for their hard work, we reward anyone who volunteers with their choice of free cards."

"Think you can handle that?" asked Juri.

"Absolutely!" Yuna beamed at her teachers, happy to take on the task.

"Alright then." Juri smiled, vaulting the counter, eager to get away from the tedious task. "See you girls in a few hours, then!"

"Thank you for your help, Mrs. Yuki!" Tsubasa waved as the married teachers left the shop, leaving the students to their own devices.

"Um… I-I'm very glad to have you working with me, senpai." Tsubasa said timidly, fidgeting her fingers. "My name is Tsubasa Seicho." She bowed politely to Yuna.

"Um… thank you?" Yuna blinked. "I'm Yuna Yozora…"

"I-I know. Everybody in the Junior Class knows you." Tsubasa blushed. "A-and I've heard that now you're in the running to be GDS's student representative? You must be an amazing duelist!"

"R-really?" Yuna wasn't too surprised that she had gained some notoriety since first arriving at GDS. From what she could gather, it was very rare for the school to receive transfer students, especially ones that hadn't attended a previous duel school or academy. What did surprise her though was that word had spread so quickly about her candidacy. _"News must travel quickly at this school, I guess."_ She mused.

"Um… I wouldn't say that I'm an 'amazing duelist…'" She muttered nervously. "I mean, I've never even used a duel disk before coming here."

"Really?!" Tsubasa gasped. "Neither did I!"

"I used to…" Yuna began.

"…Play tabletop at school with my friends." Tsubasa and Yuna eyed each other with awe as they said these words in unison.

While there were some occasional chores to do to maintain the shop, such as dusting, sweeping, or stocking the shelves, Yuna spent most of the following hours conversing with Tsubasa, who shared some of the experiences she had of her first days at GDS; days that surprisingly mirrored those of Yuna's, as she too had some experience with adjusting to GDS's classes and customs.

Despite her timid nature, Tsubasa was a very likeable kid; she seemed to Yuna like the kind of young girl that any mother or house wife would absolutely adore, being not only a sweet individual, but also very tidy, and apparently had a knack for cooking, having joined the culinary club, and regularly follows 'Michi's Kitchen', a popular cooking show featuring world-famous chef Michio Mokota.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Tsubasa broke off, halfway through talking about some of Michio's dishes. "I've talked so much about myself, but… b-but please, Yozora-senpai, tell me about you!"

"Ah…" Yuna scratched her head. "Well, there's not very much I can say about myself, honestly." She sincerely envied Tsubasa; despite lacking confidence, Tsubasa was clearly a girl who knew exactly what she wanted to be, and what goals she wanted to accomplish. Yuna couldn't say the same about herself. "I mean, I can swim good, but that's kinda it. Not good enough to make the swim team or anything like that…"

Tsubasa felt taken aback by Yuna; not disappointed by any means, but her shyness, and lack of confidence was not at all what Tsubasa was expecting.

"W-well, I'm still not very confident in my own skills, because I know that I'm not very good," Tsubasa admitted. "But I want to get better, both at cooking, and dueling, because they're both things that I love to do. I KNOW you can do the same!"

Yuna was stunned by Tsubasa's speech; stunned still as Tsubasa held her hands together, pulled close to the Junior student's heart as she looked up at her upperclassman with adoration in her wide, blue eyes.

Before either one could say or do anything else, they were snapped out of their moment by a brief, bright flash, and Yuna whipped her head around to the door, just as Asuka and Juri returned to check up on her.

"Hey, girls. Hope you two haven't been too bored?" Juri teased, as she saw Tsubasa with Yuna's hands in an affectionate grip.

"Eek!?" Tsubasa flinched. She released Yuna's hands and jumped back, her face cherry red. "Ah, n-no, not at all! We did just fine, r-right, Yozora-senpai?"

"Ah, yeah." Yuna nodded. "So, what brings you here, Mrs. Yuki? And… Mrs. Yuki?"

"Your shift is over." Asuka grinned. "So, we'll give you two your rewards, and you can go about your way." She handed each of the girls an envelope full of cards.

"If you're ever looking for extra credit, please come see us." Juri said enthusiastically. "You're always welcome to come back and help out. Just remember; you're not in the After Dark class, so… try not to let us catch you doing any PDA (Public Display of Affection), okay~?" She and Asuka giggled playfully together.

"W-we weren't doing anything like that..!" Tsubasa flustered, blushing deep crimson.

"Okay, sure~!" Juri giggled.

* * *

That night, Yuna smiled as she returned to her dorm, eager to look over her newly-earned cards, and even more eager to see how they could improve her deck.

"How'd your day go?" asked Reiko. "Akira work your ass like Masumi did?"

"No," Yuna shook her head as she emptied the envelope's contents onto her desk. "She said she wanted to start training tomorrow."

"Ugh, lucky you." Reiko groaned. She hung over the back of Yuna's chair wearily. "Masumi's such a smug jerk, and we did nothing but duel non-stop all afternoon. I'm all for practical dueling instead of the boring lectures, but damn! If I get knocked down by Master Diamond one more time, I will choose NOT to get back up!"

"You can't just give up, Reiko." Yuna grinned, pleased to find that she had been rewarded with some very good additions to her deck. "If you want to be a great duelist, you can't just give up."

Reiko looked over Yuna's shoulder, surprised by her sudden burst of confidence. "Where have you been this afternoon?"

"Doing extra credit." Yuna replied pleasantly. "Akira wanted me to work on my deck tonight."

"Mind if I join you?" Reiko offered, pulling up a chair. "I think mine could use some adjustments too."

Yuna nodded, and scooted over to make room, as Reiko began looking over her own deck.

"This feels awfully familiar, huh?" Reiko chuckled. "Remember back when we made our first decks?"

"Yeah! That feels like so long ago." Yuna sighed, recalling how her foray into dueling first began. Ever since she had been nominated for student representative, she could feel the immense pressure placed upon her, and she half-wished that she could go back to the way things were; when Duel Monsters was just a fun hobby, and where only snacks wagered at lunch time were at stake.

Now, Yuna worried that even the smallest of slip-ups would cost her dearly…

"Hey," Reiko smiled as she nudged Yuna out of her stupor. "You okay?"

"Y-yeah." Yuna nodded. She returned to her deck.

"So hey, you never answered us earlier," Reiko said as she shuffled her deck. "What Summon Course are you interested in trying out?"

"I don't know which one to go with." Yuna shrugged as she scanned the cards of her deck one by one, as if doing so would help her find her answer.

"You know, you did pretty awesome with those Pendulum Monsters back when you dueled Alice." Reiko pointed out. "Think you could do great things with those?"

Yuna shrugged, interested by the idea. While she very much wanted to have Red Sun Magician and Blue Moon Magician, her original Pendulum Monsters back, she could easily imagine picking up on Pendulum Summoning. Just then, her eyes turned to the cards that she had just earned; currently at the top of the stack was unmistakably a Normal Pendulum Monster: Foucault's Cannon, and a few more cards down was yet another Pendulum: Sea Dragoons of Draconia.

Instantly, Yuna added the two cards to her deck, and searched her rewarded cards in hopes of finding more.

"Looks like you've found your calling." Reiko grinned. "Now I'm only hoping that I can reach mine. Masumi is the master of the Fusion Course, so who better to learn from?" She sighed. "She said she's saving her 'big test' for tomorrow, so I just hope that I'll stand a better chance than I did today."

"I wonder if the others are doing as well as we are…?" Yuna sighed, slowly starting to slump over the desk.

"Well I hope Kisa isn't." Reiko grunted. "As for Alice and Hotaru? Yeah, of course they are! Here's hoping that at the two of us losers won't be left in the dust!"

She turned to Yuna, and drew closer to her, planting an affectionate kiss on her cheek, startling Yuna.

"Wah?! R-Reiko?!" she flinched.

"It's a GDS convention." Reiko laughed. "By kissing someone on the cheek, you're wishing them good luck in their endeavors." She blushed as she then smirked. "By kissing on the lips, you share some of your luck with that person~!"

Yuna also blushed, her heart pounding at the very idea. She swallowed, and closed her eyes as she impulsively advanced on Reiko, and gave her a kiss directly on the mouth, leaving Reiko utterly stunned. Then, she laughed softly as she lightly licked her lips,

"Mm, strawberry~."

"Mom gave me some chapstick before…"

Yuna was silenced as Reiko now kissed her on the lips. Her face was now a fine shade of pink that matched her hair, as for the briefest of moments, she felt the soft texture of Reiko's lips touch her own, laced with a mild, yet pleasant citrus taste.

"Like mine?" Reiko teased.

She and Yuna shared in a laugh as they continued well into the night helping each other be ready for their coming duels.

* * *

The next morning, when Tsubasa came down to breakfast, with a drowsy Miyata in tow, it was to be swarmed by her classmates, all of whom were bursting with questions for her:

"Is it true that you met Yuna Yozora?"

"What's she like?"

"Is she really as cute as she looks?"

"H-how do you…?" Tsubasa looked through the crowd to see Nagisa at her usual seat; today, she wore a devious smirk, and held up a photo of Tsubasa holding Yuna's hands close to her heart.

"Do you like my latest photo~?" Nagisa asked playfully.

 **To Be Continued...**

* * *

 ***Sigh* I wanted to have this done on Valentine's Day for Love and Duels' 1 year anniversary, and life gets in the way, and it ends up over a month late…**

 **And oh me, oh MY, this chapter went on quite the long journey since I first started writing it! I'd initially planned on it to focus primarily on the Junior girls, as they tried to help Yuna feel better after her crushing defeat in the last chapter, but change after change took place, and now I can hardly recognize it as what I'd initially set out to write. I'm sure we'll have a Junior-focused chapter another time…**

 **Anyways, this was much more of an undertaking than I had originally planned, and because it's taken so long, there are some fun facts about this chapter and its creation that I'd like to share with you guys:**

 **-Yes, Masumi Kotsu from Arc-V is indeed a student of GDS! As a prominent, elite student at LDS, she was offered an opportunity for more advanced dueling education at the Academy; an opportunity she happily took up, eager to keep up with her rival (and possible lover? ;P), Yuzu. I fully intend to highlight her in a future chapter! (And yes, I ship Masumi x Yuzu :3)**

 **-I've mentioned this briefly before, but "Juri" is actually Judai in female form. This female form, as well as the name "Juri", are a reference to a GX gender-bender yuri story I've done, "Judai is a Woman?", that you should totally go check out :P**

 **-Many of you have likely already picked up on this, but Kisa Ran's name is indeed a pun on Kisara, the white-haired, blue-eyed woman who embodied the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in YGO Duel Monsters. Does this mean that Kisa is her Arc-V incarnation? No, but it's also not a coincidence that she's been given such a name.**

 **-Some of you may have also picked up on the fact that Nagisa may seem a little… familiar. Well, that's because somehow, by some freak accident, I ended up creating a young version of Carly Nagisa (Carly Carmine, if you go by the dub)! I wanted to have a 'journalist' type character, and, thinking of Strawberry Panic, I gave her the name Nagisa, only to realize that I made a canon character by complete accident! To this day, I'm still baffled, wondering how the hell do you do that!? :P**

 **-And yeah, there is an actual, in-story reason why she's a younger girl, when she should be a young adult like in 5d's, which I do intend to explore at a later time.**

 **-Miyata is actually not an OC, but a character from the Tag Force games; full name Yuma Miyata. As you might have guessed, I chose to refer to her by her surname to avoid confusion with Yuma Tsukumo. I may use other Tag Force characters in a similar manner.**

 **-I wondered long and hard about whether or not I should use the term 'senpai', whether as a general term for an upperclassman, or as an honorific suffix, since A) I have a bit of a pet-peeve about honorifics and Japanese terms being misused and/or overused in fanfics, and B) I worried that it would seem out of place, since honorifics haven't been used up until this point.**

 **-Tsubasa is another character from my failed 'Fifth Hero' project: For those of you who don't know, I had created her, Akira, and a few others who will certainly be used in this series at one point or another, for an original Yu-Gi-Oh series, with Akira as its protagonist (hence why she's appeared so prominently over the past several chapters, and will undoubtedly be featured prominently in the chapters to come). But for a multitude of reasons, that series had fallen through. So like Akira, Tsubasa has found herself a new home here at GDS.**

 **-Although she hasn't been very prominently featured, and only just now referred to by name (something I'm determined to fix), Tia is yet another character I'd made for Fifth Hero: She would have been Akira's best friend; a very energetic jungle girl-style wild child, as well as Akira's primary love interest. She was also a foreigner, originating from an unknown (and in fact made-up) country, with some unorthodox customs, including expressing friendship with a big kiss on the mouth XD.**

 **\- Lastly, since I'll undoubtedly be asked this a lot at some point, this series is indeed set in the Arc-V universe, taking place two years after the final episode. Given Arc-V's confused (and frankly weak) ending, Yuya, Yuzu, and any of their counterparts will not have any kind of major role in this story, though minor cameos will not be out of the question.**

 ** **Well, with all of that said and done, I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter. Hopefully, next chapter won't balloon out of control like this one.****

 ** **See you then!****


	6. Sixth Trial

**~Class 1-B~**

"As of yesterday, the candidates have been selected," Nagisa exposited. "Yuna Yozora, Reiko Ryugamine, Hotaru Hanazono, Alice Gollman, and Kisa Ran; all students of Class 4-A. Over the next several days, their abilities will be tested and evaluated by one of the Five Stars of GDS, to determine who's the smartest, the most gracious, and the best duelist; to determine who should represent our academy in the coming School Duel."

With the announcement for the School Duel's official date, everyone in the academy, Juniors and Seniors alike, were eager for any and all news relating to the upcoming event; the candidate selection process was something of an event in and of itself, as the tests put in place for the candidates often proved to be an exciting spectacle.

"And with such a phenomenal event upon us," Nagisa went on. "Today marks the first day of my special coverage for the selection event: ' **The Star Watch!** ' Not only will I be providing you updates on each and every one of the candidates' progress, but I'll be monitoring for any… special developments that take place during this time as well~! In addition, you'll know when and where you can go to personally witness your favorite candidate and/or star in action!"

Nagisa paused to let her audience cheer with excitement about this news.

"So far, Reiko Ryugamine has already been put through the wringer in the dueling courts by our Fusion Star: Masumi Kotsu." She pressed on, showing off photos of an Action Duel that had taken place yesterday:

One picture illustrating Reiko riding atop Luster Dragon #2, facing off against Masumi's Gem-Knights; the next showing Luster Dragon being cut down, Reiko taking a substantial hit to her Life Points by Gem-Knight Master Diamond; the third showed Reiko defeated, with Masumi standing with her arms crossed, and wearing her usual smug grin, looking as if, at best, Reiko had only barely scratched her Life Points, and the fourth and final picture showed Masumi giving Reiko the Spell Card Polymerization.

"And Reiko's tribulations are far from over, because she's got another duel coming up today in Leo Town." Nagisa continued.

She took another pause following this news, both to give the class time to give their reactions, and to see if she had Tsubasa's attention; she knew that her next bit of news would be sure to grab her attention, as both of her favorite upperclassmen had been paired together:

"Next, the Xyz Star Akira Yushida will be taking our latest senpai, Yuna Yozora, into Leo Town to put her skills to the test. In addition, Yuna has recently earned herself several new cards to improve her deck, so it seems that she's more than ready for whatever Akira has to throw at her. If you wanna personally see them in action, their duel will take place in the town square at 2:00!"

Sure enough, Nagisa had Tsubasa's attention, who was clearly looking forward to this event:

"I should make something for Yuna!" She was saying, flustered, much to Miyata's amusement. "What should I make? Should I give it to her before or after her duel…?"

"Lastly, the Pendulum Star Angela Cooke will be taking on the busty beauty Alice Gollman today at the Madolche Chateau!" Nagisa pressed on. "How will they perform? And what about our remaining candidates? Only time will tell, so look forward to the next edition of 'The Star Watch' to see how it all unfolds!"

* * *

 **Love and Duels in Full Bloom**

 **Sixth Trial**

* * *

"You have no place being near Kazumi. And you never will."

Yuna awoke with a jolt at these words, jumping out of bed, only for her feet to land on solid rock, instead of the soft carpeting of her bedroom floor.

She gasped as she looked around to find herself in the Valley of the Dragons, frightened as she heard the draconic roars from the monsters soaring above her.

"Are you afraid, Yuna?"

It was Kazumi, who walked toward Yuna, only for her charming green eyes to turn a cold, piercing blue, her short blue hair growing long, and white. Kazumi had become Kisa, who advanced on Yuna, who backed away fearfully.

"Good. You should be." Kisa snarled, as her teeth became large, monstrous fangs, and her hands turned into big, sharp claws, as she transformed into the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and roared down at Yuna dangerously as blue-white lightning burst from the dragon's mouth…..

* * *

Yuna screamed as she awoke with a jolt, horrified by the nightmare she had just had. She clasped her hands to her chest, her heart beating erratically as she panted in terror.

"Yuna? Are you okay?" Yuna flinched as she looked around wildly for the source of the voice speaking to her. She stopped as her eyes fell on Reiko, who stood right next to her.

"Y-yes…" Yuna breathed deeply as she let herself drop back down onto her back. "I just… I just had a bad dream, that's all…"

"I was afraid of that." Reiko sighed. Ever since her disastrous defeat at the hands of Kisa Ran, Yuna routinely had nightmares surrounding her; the fear that produced those nightmares lingered well into her daily life, where she would be frightened by the sight of large dragon monsters, which invoked the familiar visage of the deadly Blue-Eyes White Dragon under Kisa's command.

"Hey! C'mon! Let's not be so down!" Reiko laughed, intent on cheering up her best friend. "Our day's just started, and hey! It's a weekend, so let's go have ourselves some fun!"

Yuna yawned as she got out of bed.

"I thought Masumi had a big test for you today?" She asked.

"That's not until this afternoon." Reiko said. "So, we've got tons of time to do what we want!"

"Okay." Yuna agreed. "So what do you want to…?" She froze, blushing as Reiko casually pulled her pajama shirt off over her head.

"I was thinking we could have a day out on the town!" Reiko replied enthusiastically as she kicked her shorts off. "You haven't been into Leo Town yet, have you?"

"….Uh-uh." Yuna shook her head, still watching Reiko awkwardly as she walked about the room in her underwear. However, this wasn't entirely true: When she first arrived at the academy, Yuna had wandered lost through the town at the base of the hill where GDS stood, before being guided in the right direction. Though, she hadn't been in that town since, and, being lost and confused at the time, she didn't know any of its notable locations at all.

"Okay, well that settles it then!" Reiko grinned as she pulled a pair of jeans and a black shirt with a band logo whose sleeves had been torn off from her dresser. "You, me, and Hotaru! We're gonna have a day out on the town, just like old times!"

* * *

Yuna felt particularly out of place alongside her friends, as she followed them out of the academy gate. Just like Reiko, Hotaru was also wearing casual clothes in place of her school uniform; in her case, a red long-sleeve shirt under a white coat with a diamond plaid red skirt. Unlike them however, Yuna didn't have a large selection of clothing to choose from, so she wore the red and white uniform of her old school.

"You can wear whatever you want on the weekends, y'know?" Reiko teased.

"I didn't bring many other clothes with me." Yuna said sheepishly. "I thought I'd only need my GDS uniform, so I only packed my pajamas…" She blushed.

"Well then, I know where our first stop will be!" Reiko declared. "The Junmo Boutique!"

She led the way down the hill, but Yuna came to a stop as she saw the dirt path split off in another direction. She knew that the way forward led out into Leo Town, but was more than a little curious about the branching path. She had spotted this road when she first came to GDS, and even now, she was still curious where it led….

"Yuna! What are you doing?" Reiko called. "Town's this way!"

"Uh, coming…" Yuna hurried to catch up with her friends.

Although she had come through this town before, it felt to Yuna like it was the first time. Like GDS, the town bore a distinctly historical appearance, much of it clearly having been built at least a hundred years ago, with cobblestone streets, not a car in sight traveling the roads, and buildings fashioned from brick and stone.

Yuna grinned as she took in her surroundings. While she didn't know this town at all, she could easily tell that where she and her friends walked was a residential area, given the community spread across, and the slightest peaks into doors and windows indicating apartments and houses that were being comfortably settled. She couldn't help but notice that several of these living spaces were inhabited by girls around her own age…

"GDS doesn't require all its students to live on campus." Hotaru explained, certain Yuna had questions about this community. "So, many students and teachers can choose to live here in town. Most times, the academy will even cover some of your living expenses."

"That's cool!" Yuna marveled. She pondered the idea of living here herself; living freely, independently, but also safely in a friendly community. She smiled as she breathed deeply, certain that it would be paradise to live here.

"Eh, I dunno." Reiko shrugged. "I mean, yeah, it's cool to live on your own, but that's kinda lonely too. Plus, it's a bit tiring just traveling up or down hill once; imagine doing that every day for the rest of the year!"

Yuna sighed, depressed that Reiko had ruined her wonderful fantasy. "You're right…" She groaned.

"Besides, isn't it nicer to be living more tightknit with someone you know?" Reiko grinned, wrapping her arms around Yuna's shoulders.

"I have to admit, this does seem like a very nice place to live." Hotaru remarked as she eyed some of the small houses that she passed by.

"Hey guys." Rounding the corner in front of them was Alice, who was carrying two large paper bags in each arm. "What're you up to today?"

"Just hanging out until our assessments." said Reiko. "How 'bout you?"

"I guess I could say the same." Alice shrugged. "I've got my match coming in about an hour or two, so I decided to go get groceries for my mom in the meantime."

"You live in town?" said Yuna, intrigued.

"Not really," Alice said as she took the lead. "I live in a dorm like you guys, but my whole family is at GDS, so we have a place here in town; primarily to serve as mom's clinic, though anyone in the family can come and go as they please."

"Her mom is one of the doctors at the academy." Hotaru informed Yuna.

"Come to think of it…" Alice mused. "Yuna, you haven't had your body measurement exam yet, have you?"

"No need for that," Reiko smirked. "I already measured her for her uniform size~."

Yuna blushed, nudging Reiko for embarrassing her.

"That's not really the same." said Alice. "If you want, maybe mom could give you a quick examination before your match?" She teased.

"Ah… uh, m-maybe not?" Yuna flustered.

"I'm kidding," Alice chuckled. "But, on a more serious note, she will make you sooner or later. Here we are." She stopped at a two-story house with a plaque by the door that read _'Gollman Clinic'_ in ornate golden lettering. Her arms full, Yuna opened the door, and immediately upon looking inside, turned a bright, glowing red:

"Aaaaaahhhh~, I needed that shower!" Tammy Gollman was sighing delightedly. She was walking around the house wearing nothing but a towel around her torso, barely able to contain her very ample bust. "Oh, hey sis! You didn't tell me you were bringing friends over!"

"Uh, h-hi Ms. Gollman." Yuna blushed awkwardly, trying to look away from her teacher's voluptuous figure.

"No need to be so formal!" Ms. Gollman laughed. "Outside of school, you can just call me Tammy, okay, Yuna?"

"A-alright." Yuna agreed. "Um… do you think you could put some clothes on, Ms… er, I mean, Tammy?"

"Oh, don't be so shy!" Tammy grinned. "We're all women here. Dress code in this house is clothing optional… and uniform optional on the weekends." She teased, observing Yuna's old school uniform.

"So I've been told." Yuna sighed.

Reiko, meanwhile, although very red in the face, eyed Tammy with a big grin. "So, teacher, do you think I could do some… extra credit for you?" She asked, an enthusiastic spark in her eyes.

"Tempting… but today's a busy day for me." Tammy smirked. "But, maybe I could accommodate you after dark~?"

"That'll work." Reiko smirked right back.

Before either Yuna or Hotaru could question Reiko's exchange with Tammy, a new face entered the room; an older woman near Alice's height, with short black hair, lustrous red eyes, and wore little more than a camisole and panties to cover her curvaceous, womanly form, and an incredibly massive bust was threatening to spill out of her top.

"Thanks for getting me groceries, Alice." She grinned. "Ah, we have company, I see~?" She instantly spotted Yuna, and approached her.

"So you're the new transfer student that I've heard so much about~!" She said, in a smooth, flirtatious voice. "I'm Dr. Jacqueline Gollman, pleased to meet you." She hugged Yuna's head directly into her massive bosom.

"Mph, p-pleasure to meet you too." Yuna's voice was muffled behind the boobs in her face.

"If you're ever not feeling good, you can always come to me for treatment," Dr. Gollman grinned. "But more to the point, I don't have you in my medical records yet, so I'm going to need to give you a thorough examination soon."

More than a little overwhelmed by Dr. Gollman, Yuna pulled herself free of her cleavage, and fidgeted uncomfortably.

"I… I don't have to do it now, do I?"

"Not today, no." Dr. Gollman giggled, entertained by Yuna's shyness. "But I will schedule an appointment for you in the next few days, and I will expect you to be there, 'kay?"

Yuna nodded, though wasn't looking forward to such an occasion. Physical exams were one thing that she looked forward to the very least at her old school; she never liked being seen unclothed, and she knew, just from the way her family was, that Dr. Gollman's examination would be particularly…. exposing.

"Yuna?" Alice called, from the top of the stairs. "Could you join me for a moment?"

"Uh?" Yuna blinked as she saw Alice lead Reiko and Hotaru upstairs.

"Go ahead." Dr. Gollman smiled. "We'll see each other again soon~!" She winked, making Yuna turn red again, before hurrying to catch up with her friends.

She followed them into Alice's bedroom, and before she could ask what she called her for, Alice began undressing.

"Wha…?!" She gasped. She tried to look away from Alice as she took off her clothes, and yet, for whatever reason, her eyes remained fixed on the busty blonde.

"You come from a nudist family, don't you?" Reiko said flatly, not at all afraid of watching Alice strip.

"Hardly," Alice replied as she stripped down to her underwear. "More like, we just don't share the same timid, self-conscious feelings about our bodies the way most people do; After all, like mom said, we're all women here, even dad."

"Wha…?" Hotaru wanted to question Alice about what she just said, but she had a more important thought on her mind: "So, why did you call us up here? I'm sure you didn't just want to give us a strip show." She added as Alice began unhooking her bra.

"Yeah, been meaning to ask about that part." Reiko smirked as she sat across the bed, watching Alice undress. "I mean, not to say that I'm not enjoying the show…"

"I've been chosen to be assessed by Angela Cooke: GDS's Pendulum Star." Alice stated. "And as my first test, she wants to evaluate all of my abilities in an Action Duel: From navigating Action Fields, to showmanship. Because of the latter, I've elected to change into something a bit more… formal for the occasion."

"Showmanship?" Yuna repeated.

"No doubt you've at least seen some professional Duelists in action?" Alice explained as she changed into some very fancy, lacy black lingerie. "The true joy of Action Dueling isn't just about how good people can play their cards, but also about putting on a show. A popular example is the rising star of the dueling world, Yuya Sakaki. Every duel that he takes part in is a spectacular circus performance that never fails to leave the audience enthralled."

"If you're going in just the fancy undies, I'd say you're already covered on that front~!" Reiko teased.

"At any rate," Alice continued as she put on a garter belt, and pulled on a pair of long stockings attached to the garters. "In line with the idea that an Action Duel is a spectacle, it's traditional for a duelist to dress up for such an occasion. As such, I've been told to treat this as if I was participating in a professional duel."

"Uh, so… why did you call us here?" asked Yuna. "….and why did we need to watch you change?"

"Did you like what you saw?" Alice smirked as she took out a lace-covered black dress. "At any rate, I wanted to talk to all of you guys about these assessments."

"What about them?" asked Hotaru.

"There's a reason why we're being assessed by the Five Stars." Alice explained. "And it's because they're expecting nothing short of perfection."

Yuna, Reiko, and Hotaru were silent for a moment. They exchanged looks with one another, each more or less on the same page.

"We know." Yuna replied.

"One of us is going to be representing GDS, after all." Hotaru said.

"And I think at this point, everyone knows how much Masumi wiped the floor with me yesterday!" Reiko grumbled.

"What I'm saying is that it's only a matter of time until we start dueling each other." Alice clarified. "Sure, I can understand if there's a candidate here or there who gets dropped because the Star in question thinks she's not up to snuff, but I thought it important to bring that very real possibility to your attention."

Yuna felt as if a large stone had just been dropped into her stomach as she recalled that yesterday, Akira stated that she would be giving Yuna four tests to evaluate her skills. Then, she recalled that there were four other candidates…

"You're not thinking of bowing out now, are you?" asked Alice, eyes fixed on Yuna.

"N-no…" Yuna squeaked, only partially telling the truth.

"Good." Alice nodded as she stood fully dressed in a black maid's dress. "Because today, I'm just dueling with Angela, but it's entirely possible that tomorrow, one of you will be my opponent, and if that's the case, then I'm not afraid to take you down. If any of you can't say the same, then you might as well pack up and go home."

Hotaru fidgeted nervously, uncomfortable with the idea of dueling her friends. "S-so, where's your duel being held?" She asked.

"My dad runs a café in town," Alice replied. "You guys would like it; lots of great teas and coffees, a very nice selection of sweets and baked goods, and it's even got an Action Duel arena."

"Sounds like a popular attraction." Hotaru commented. "Somewhere you can get a meal and a show."

"It is, and that's exactly why Angela's chosen that place to have our duel." said Alice, putting on a white apron to complete her ensemble. "Like I said, she wants to treat this as a professional Action Duel, with an audience and everything. Oh, and Yuna?"

"Y-yes?" Yuna blinked.

"I went easy on you in our first duel," Alice smirked. "But school duel or not, remember that I won't do it again. And my deck has been improved considerably since then."

Yuna swallowed, feeling a bit intimidated by this proclamation; if what Alice said was true, and she actually went easy on her, it didn't exactly show…

"Anyways," Alice suddenly smiled brightly. "Let's go!"

Almost the instant she stepped out of Alice's bedroom, Yuna saw into the room across the hall, where a woman was lying in bed, very obviously naked under the sheets covering her.

"Ah-ah~!" Tammy waged her finger playfully as she stood in front of Yuna, still wearing only a towel. "What you're seeing is for adults only~." She sauntered into her bedroom to join the woman in her bed, dropping her towel just as she shut the door behind her.

"…was that the school nurse?" Reiko blinked, very red in the face.

* * *

As she followed Alice down the street, Yuna's mind was not on the town itself, or even the thought of her upcoming duel, but rather on the things she had seen inside the Gollman house; her face a shade of pink that almost matched her hair.

"Okay, no, seriously. I can't get over that!" Reiko rambled. "Our teacher, and the school nurse, nude, and… and…?!"

"It's always amusing how much sexuality flusters normal humans." Alice laughed.

"N-normal humans?" Hotaru blinked. "What…..?"

"I'll explain at a better time." Alice grinned. "So… First impressions of my family?"

"Freaky." said Reiko.

"Weird." said Hotaru.

"Uh… interesting?" said Yuna.

"And you haven't seen anything yet." Alice smirked as she looked back at her friends' highly embarrassed faces.

Many heads turned as Alice walked by, especially as she approached the café itself; many of the patrons inside looked out the window with excitement as she passed by, and if all eyes weren't on her before, they absolutely were as she walked through the door, a bell jingling as if to announce her presence.

"Oh dude, she's even got the maid outfit on!" Someone could be heard saying as Alice moved through the crowd. It was strange to Yuna to see that there were actually men among the patrons; after all, GDS didn't even have any male teachers. Although, as she had to remind herself, this town was the center point of two gender-divided academies.

"Good morning, everybody." Alice greeted the café at large, as she bowed, with the hem of her skirt in each hand.

"Oh, there you are, Alice!" She was greeted by a woman with short brown hair, donned in a green Chinese dress. "The arena is ready for you, as is your challenger."

"Thanks, dad." Alice smiled.

"Dad?!" Reiko muttered. "Uh, so, are you…?"

"That's just what we call her." Alice muttered. "Come on." She motioned to her friends, leading them towards a dueling arena in the center of the café, where somebody was waiting for her: a small girl with dark skin, long, waist-length blonde hair, and deep blue eyes, who was dressed in the blue and gold uniform of GDS, though with what looked like a red gem pinned to her tie.

"Good of you to come all dressed up." She said, as she strapped her duel disk on. "I'm ready for the duel whenever you are."

"Wait, wait, you said this duel was supposed to be a 'mock professional' duel, right?" Reiko interjected. "So then why are you being put up against this little kid?"

"Kid?!" The small girl growled. She jumped onto Reiko furiously. "Who're you calling a kid, you flat-chested flunky!? I'll have you know, I'm Angela Cooke: Pendulum Star of GDS! And for your information, I'M the one who should be calling you 'kid', because I'm 18 years old!"

"You're one to call me 'flat-chested', ya little runt!" Reiko retorted.

"Don't you call me runt!" Angela raised an arm, clearly ready for a fight.

Yuna started to sweat as tensions rose between Reiko and Angela, not sure how, or even if, she should break up the fight…

"Hey!" Both Angela and Reiko jumped back as a kick swept between them. Alice's 'dad' stood frowning at the two. "No fighting." She stated seriously. "Save it for the duel arena."

"Sorry." Reiko and Angela said together.

"With that out of the way," Alice spoke up, addressing the audience that had gathered. "If you don't know me already, my name is Alice Gollman, and today, I will be taking my first assessment test, for GDS representative."

A short applause followed, during which time Angela returned to the arena.

"Right." She said, her voice more serious now. "As you may know, this assessment will be testing not only your dueling skills, but your potential as a professional duelist. After all, GDS's representative can be nothing less than somebody who embodies the potential of a true professional duelist. You've taken the first step nicely, by putting on a nice outfit, but there's more to Action Dueling than just dressing up."

"Eh, speaking of, don't you think you might be a bit underdressed?" Reiko remarked.

"Heh." Angela smirked, as if she was waiting for someone to point out her lack of flashy attire, for some sort of dramatic effect. She touched the gem pinned onto her tie, and her uniform transformed right before everyone's eyes:

As her duel disked sparked to life with a bright gold blade, Angela now stood donned in black robes like those of a priestess, with glowing yellow circuitry-like lines etched across it.

"Whoa!" Yuna gasped, impressed with what she had seen. "How did you do that?!"

Angela only grinned as she heard the amazed reactions from the crowd. "Activate Action Field: Cosmic Sanctuary!"

The arena was darkened by the night sky as Alice and Angela stood on a stone platform, in the center of an ancient-looking stone sanctuary.

"Duelists locked in battle! Kicking off from the earth, and soaring in the air with their monsters! They storm through this field! Behold! The latest and greatest evolution in dueling. Action….!"

"DUEL!"

 **Alice: 4000**

 **Angela: 4000**

"I'll begin by activating a Continuous Spell: Madolche Ticket." Alice declared. "Next, I summon one monster face-down, and end my turn."

"My move." Angela drew, and then smirked. "I set the Pendulum Scale, using Scale 1 Qliphort Monolith, and Scale 9 Qliphort Helix!"

"A Pendulum Summon already?!" Yuna gasped as two blue columns emerged behind Angela.

"Pendulum Summon! Come forth: Qliphort Cephalopod (ATK: 2800), and Qliphort Carrier (ATK: 2400)!"

"That hardly seems fair." Reiko commented. "She can just bring out as many of those monsters as she wants?"

"I didn't really hear you questioning how fair Pendulums were when Yuna used them." Hotaru teased.

"Well, yeah, but..." Reiko muttered.

Yuna, meanwhile, was quiet. Looking at these monsters, it made her realize how little she really knew what she was doing when she first Pendulum Summoned. And as she remembered that Angela was GDS's master Pendulum Duelist, she knew that this was barely even the beginning.

"Since they were Special Summoned, their Levels and ATK are reduced." (Cephalopod & Carrier ATK: 1800 LV: 4) "Qliphort Cephalopod, attack Alice's face-down monster!"

The card lit up and a silver disc came flying out and beaned it right in the red jewel, and collided into Angela's forehead.

(Angela: 4000 – 3800)

"You attacked my facedown monster: Madolche Marmalmaide and she's packing 2000 DEF."

The familiar maid doll caught the disc, which revealed to be her silver tray.

(Madolche Marmalmaide DEF: 2000)

"You've set up a good defense." Angela commended. "A simple trick, but an effective one. But my Battle Phase isn't over yet: I activate the Quick-Play Spell Enemy Controller. Now, by sacrificing Cephalopod, I switch your Marmalmaide into ATK mode. (Madolche Marmalmaide ATK: 800) And because of Qliphort Helix's effect, all monsters you control lose 300 ATK. (ATK: 800 - 500)

"Now, Qliphort Carrier, attack Marmalmaide!" The ship fired off several lasers, which struck the maid head-on, while Alice flinched.

(Alice: 4000 - 2700)

"That first attack was surprisingly clumsy of her," Hotaru commented. "But that was a very impressive comeback."

"Lastly, I tribute Qliphort Carrier, in order to Advance Summon another Level 6 Qliphort Carrier!" (ATK: 2400)

"What was the point of that?" Reiko wondered, confused. "I mean, why waste a Normal Summon just to summon the same monster you already have?"

"Qli monsters are weakened by being Special Summoned." Hotaru explained. "Remember how high her monsters were when she Pendulum Summoned? It may be the same monster she already had on the field, but it's considerably stronger than before."

"My turn is done." Angela stated. "And now, because of Qliphort Monolith's effect, I draw one card for every Qli monster that I tributed this turn."

"Madolche Marmalmaide is then shuffled back into the deck. And now thanks to Madolche Ticket, I can add another Madolche monster to my hand."

Alice returned the card to deck, and added another one to her hand before her duel disk shuffled her deck.

"My turn and I draw," She drew her next card, "I now play the spell Interrupted Kaiju Slumber! First, it destroys all monsters on the field..." Qliphort Carrier and Cephalopod each burst into pieces.

"And then I summon two Kaiju monsters from deck; one on my side, and the other on yours."

Kaiju?" Yuna repeated. She recalled the massive, powerful monster that Alice used in their duel. "She has more than one of those?!"

"You're giving me one of your monsters?" Angela smirked. "You truly are a gracious host." She teased.

"Don't thank me just yet," Alice said with a smirk; "To my side, I summon Dogoran, the Mad Flame Kaiju!"

An explosion of flames erupted behind the blonde girl and from out of the inferno came a massive reptilian foot that hit the ground with a hard thud. Another foot followed with the same effect as all eyes trailed up the titan before them. It had the appearance akin to a theropod with bulky legs and short arms. It sported the largest pair of wings anyone had ever seen while a row of fiery spikes ran from its navel up to its neck; a similar row adorned the back and ended in a crest on top of its head. White boney plates ran along the spikes on its chest and all over its head, giving it a skull-like appearance. The beast glared down at its summoner's opponent with a low growl before unleashing a bellowing roar of challenge that forced all others present to cover their ears at the sheer volume.

(Dogoran, the Mad Flame Kaiju - ATK: 3000 - 2700)

Many of the spectators shook as the ground in and around the arena shook, and several jaws dropped.

"Looks to me like that's her signature monster." Reiko commented.

"She didn't use that one when we dueled..." Yuna commented. Just then, she remembered that Alice had a card in her hand during their duel that she hesitated playing, but chose not to. It was then that she felt disheartened; she thought Alice was only talking big when she talked earlier about holding back, but now, as she looked up that the intimidating, gargantuan monster, that she realized she only won that duel because Alice let her...

"And what monster is it that you serve to me, madam?" Angela teased.

"I give unto you... Super Anti-Kaiju War Machine Mecha-Dogoran."

A large pair of metal doors opened up behind Angela as a titanic metal facsimile of the monster Alice summoned to her side was lifted by an unseen elevator to the Pendulum Star's field. Its empty eyes lit up and metal spines became alight with blue energy before it let out a hissing screech.

(Super Anti-Kaiju War Machine Mecha-Dogoran ATK:?)

"...A question mark?" Yuna blinked, unsure if she saw the ATK display correctly.

Angela read the metal monster's information on her duel disk, and gritted her teeth nervously: Mecha-Dogoran's effect would allow her to equip another Kaiju monster from her hand or graveyard to it, and gain the ATK of that monster: an effect ultimately useless to her, leaving her only monster at 0 ATK.

"Dogoran, attack with Rage Flare!"

The spikes on the monster began to shine and change from a burning orange to a neon purple before it opened its jaws and fired a focused heat ray.

"Whoa crap!" Angela exclaimed. She dashed as far away from the incoming attack as she could, and out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the glimmer of an Action Card, which she dove for.

"Action Spell: Miracle! My monster's not destroyed, and I only take half of the damage I would have normally!"

The beam struck the mechanical double, but it survived the coming explosion, which knocked Angela down.

(Angela: 3800 - 2450)

"I set one card facedown and end my turn." said Alice.

As Angela stood back up and drew, she eyed Alice, impressed with what she'd seen so far.

 _"Indeed, she's a capable duelist, but there's a bit more to this duel than just winning,"_ She thought as she mused her next move. _"Aside from the sexy outfit, she hasn't really given us much of a spectacle..."  
_  
"I Pendulum Summon Qliphort Scout!" She declared. The twin columns of light illuminated again, and a single monster emerged from the portal (ATK: 1000). "And now, I tribute Qliphort Scout and Mecha-Dogoran, to Advance Summon: Qliphort Disk!" both of her monsters were consumed by light, from which emerged a disk-shaped ship, whose outer edge glowed in rainbow light (ATK: 2800).

"And now, because of Qliphort Disk's effect, I summon two more Qliphort monsters from my deck to the field! Come forth: Qliphort Cephalopod (ATK: 2800 - 1800), and Qliphort Shell! (ATK: 2800 - 1800)"

"Qliphort Disk, attack Dogoran!"

Alice looked around and caught sight of an action card on the ground.

"Need your tail, big guy!" She called out to Dogoran.

The fiery titan swung its tail in the card's direction, with Alice grabbing on to the tip mid-swing. She reached out and snatched it up before flipping onto the monsters tail.

"Action Spell card: Star's Blessing! I pick on monster on my field and it becomes immune to spell and trap cards for the remainder of the turn and he can't be destroyed in battle. In other words, Dogoran is back up to full steam!"

The flame kaiju's spine changed to purple again as flames curled from out of his maw. (ATK: 2700 - 3000.)

"Nicely done, but that won't save you," Angela smirked. "I activate a Quick-Play Spell: Forbidden Chalice. Qliphort Disk gains 400 ATK, though its effects are negated for the rest of the turn (ATK: 2800 - 3200).

Dogoran growled as it was struck by the attack, angry that it couldn't retaliate and destroy its enemy.

(Alice: 2700 – 2500)

 _"Not too bad."_ Angela thought. _"With that one action card, she just shut down my strategy; possibly even turned the duel around..."_

"My turn is done. And because of Qliphort Monolith's Pendulum effect, since I tributed a Qli monster, I can draw one card. Your turn."

"My turn then," Alice drew her next card. _"Let's give this a go,"_ she thought as she pulled a card from her hand:

"I play the Field Spell Kyoutou Waterfront!"

Several large building began to shoot up from the ground. Skyscrapers as tall as the blonde's kaiju monster followed by a massive tower at the center and off to the side; a harbor and sea formed.

"Interesting change of scenery." Angela commented.

 _"Normally, I'd say this was a rookie mistake, since this would block her from using any Action Cards, but..."_ She eyed Dogoran, who already looked as if it was poised for another attack. _"She clearly knows exactly what she's doing."_

"Next, I activate my face-down: Madolche Waltz, and then I play Double Summon, which allows me to normal summon twice this turn: so I summon two Madolche Chouxvalier!"

Two young men atop plushy horses materialized on the field, brandishing candy cane swords. (ATK: 1700 – 1400)

"Then I play Mystical Space Typhoon and destroy your Qliphort Helix!"

Helix exploded, the column of light to Angela's side fading along with it.

"Wait, how did she do that?" Yuna interjected. "Mystical Space Typhoon only works on Spell or Trap cards, doesn't it?"

"And while in the Pendulum Zone, a Pendulum Card essentially IS a Spell Card." Angela replied, frowning as she looked back at where her monster used to be, realizing that Alice had her mostly pinned.

"And with Helix destroyed, my monsters' ATK returns to normal." Alice added. (Dogoran: 2700 – 3000 Madolche Chouxvalier ATK: 1400 – 1700)

"And since that's three cards sent to the graveyard, that's three kaiju counters placed on Kyoutou Waterfront," Alice said with a smirk. The center tower lit up three rings. "Now, I activate Dogoran's special ability: by removing all three kaiju counters, I can destroy all monsters on your side of the field!"

The fiery titan blasted out a plume of smoke that soon ignited into a torrent of flames; the flame began to narrow until it was a thin plasma cutter. Dogoran than turned its head in the direction of Angela's monsters, the plasma cutting through buildings and land like a heated blade.

Angela barely had time for any kind of reaction before the field around her was engulfed in explosive fire, and she was blown back off her feet as all of the monsters on her field were completely obliterated.

As she got up and the fire and smoke began to clear, Angela heard the crowd cheering for Alice; evidently, she was a regular crowd favorite in these parts.

 _"Rough around the edges in terms of presentation, but I'll certainly give her a pass... at least for today."_ She thought.

"Unfortunately, Dogoran can't attack after using his effect. These two on the hand..." Alice trailed off, pointing at her two Madolche monsters. They seemed to understand the unspoken command and, charged forward to attack Angela directly.

"I activate an Action Card: Evasion! This negates the attack of one of your monsters!" Angela jumped out of the way of one of the charging horsemen, dodging his strike completely undamaged. However, the second one hit her head-on, and trampled her easily.

(Angela: 2450 – 750)

 _"All that smoke from Dogoran's destructive effect was good cover,"_ Angela thought, as she panted. _"Only way I could have gotten that Action Card unnoticed. However..."_ Her eyes fell on a second stray card just within arm's reach; one that she wasn't quite fast enough to grab in time for the second attack on her life points.

"And now, I activate the effect of Madolche Waltz. Each time a Madolche monster is involved in battle one way or another, I can deal 300 points of damage to you for each one."

(Angela: 750 - 150)

 _"_ _Looks like this'll be my last turn,"_ Angela thought as she drew. _"So, gotta make this one count..."_

"I activate Pot of Avarice; now, I pick five monsters from my Graveyard, shuffle them back into my deck, and then draw two cards." She looked over to the Action Card that she failed to grab during Alice's onslaught, and snatched it up. She sighed: _"This wouldn't have done me much good anyway..."  
_  
"Then, I use the Action Card: Chest of Greed, which lets me draw two more cards. Now, with my Scale 9 Qliphort Shell, I once again set the Pendulum Scale! Pendulum Summon! Come forth: Qliphort Disk (ATK: 2800-1800), Scout (ATK: 1000), and Stealth (ATK: 2800-1800)! But I'm far from done. Now, I tribute all three monsters, to call upon my greatest monster!"

All of Angela's monsters turned into multi-colored lights that shot back up into the sky, into the portal they had descended from, and one gigantic light shot straight down in their place:

"Advance Summon! Apoqliphort Towers!" Angela stood atop the center of three ascending, tremendous towers that easily stood higher than Alice's Field Spell tower (ATK: 3000).

"Now, because of Qliphort Shell's effect, all monsters you control lose 300 ATK (Dogoran: 3000 - 2700 Madolche Chouxvalier ATK: 1700 - 1400). And, once per turn, because of my Towers' effect, you need to send one monster from your hand or field to send to the graveyard."

"Very well. I choose..." Alice took a moment to consider her next move. Then, she pointed to: "…Dogoran!"

"What?!" Yuna, Reiko, and Hotaru said together.

"Why would she sacrifice her strongest monster?" Yuna asked, completely bewildered.

"Let's finish this duel!" Angela declared. "Apoqliphort Towers, destroy Madolche Chouxvalier!" nothing happened. "...huh? Why won't...?" she froze, with sudden realization.

"Madolche Chouxvalier's special ability makes it so you can't attack other Madolche monsters except for him, however, since there are two on the field..." Alice trailed off with a smirk.

"One's ability protects the other, so she can't attack!" Yuna realized.

"Then I...!" Angela paused again, realizing that her hand was empty. "...I end my turn. And because of Monolith's Pendulum effect, I draw 3 cards; one for each Qli monster I tributed this turn."

Alice didn't bother to look at the card she had drew, as she declared:

"To battle! Chouxvalier, attack Apoqliphort Towers!"

"But your monsters only have 1400 ATK each; not even half of mine." Angela pointed out.

"True," Alice smirked. "But have you forgotten about Madolche Waltz?"

Angela's eyes widened, realizing just how perfectly Alice's actions have been.

(Angela: 150 – 0)

 **Winner: Alice**

Alice curtseyed as the Action Field dissipated, and the crowd cheered her victory.

"Well, you're a bit of a crude showman," Angela criticized, but grinned. "But I've gotta say, you know how to play your cards right! You pass your first test magnificently."

* * *

Soon after finishing her duel, Alice, still donned in her maid attire, briskly strode about the café as she served Yuna, Reiko, and Hotaru some drinks they had ordered.

"So, what did you guys think?" she asked.

"You were amazing." Hotaru commended.

"Yeah, I didn't think you had those kinds of cards." Yuna marveled, though deep down, she felt a pang of discomfort, knowing that Alice had held back in their last duel; if she had played like she did against Angela, Yuna knew she wouldn't have stood a chance.

"I was kinda hoping for a sexier show, what with your choice of outfit." Reiko teased. "'Crude showman', indeed."

"I'm just used to putting on a…. different kind of show." Alice shrugged. "Anyway, I know you've got tests coming up soon. How do you think you'll do?"

"Hard to say." Reiko shrugged. "I don't know what Masumi's got in store for me."

"I could say the same about Akira." Yuna sighed as she sipped on some green tea. "

"My test is coming tomorrow," Hotaru said. "And all I know is that 'The Prince' wants to see how I handle a Riding Duel at some point."

"A what?" Yuna blinked.

"If you're looking for a spectacle," Alice laughed. "You can't get much flashier than dueling at high speeds on a motorcycle."

"Card games on motorcycles?" Reiko snorted with laughter. "How would something like THAT catch on?"

"You'd be surprised." Hotaru smirked. "But anyway, yeah, they're a pretty advanced dueling format, so I don't expect for her to go very easy on me."

"Sounds like we candidates are all in for some tough times and hard climbs." Alice said as she took a seat at her friends' table. "But, we'll take them on together." She raised a cup of coffee to propose a toast. "To future wins."

"To future wins!"

 **To Be Continued….**

* * *

 **Oh, wow, this one got pretty naughty, didn't it~? Well, if you're looking for more lewd fun, sorry to say that you won't find it here (gotta keep it rated T, and even then, I worry this chapter might have gone a little over the line), but keep an eye out for a side series that'll be coming soon: Love and Duels After Dark.**

 **As always, a special thanks to Azure Dragon of the East for his OCs, the Gollman Family. And there's a bit more family to meet~!**

 **Also, Angela Cooke is another character borrowed from the Tag Force games.**

 **Anyways, this was a fun little diversion, but next chapter, it's Yuna's turn to duel.**

 **See you then!**


	7. Seventh Tribulation

**I knew this day would come eventually: the day where original cards would enter the picture! Sure, there was Red Sun Magician and Blue Moon Magician, Yuna's original Pendulum Cards, but they've barely been in the story thus far, and there will indeed be a number of original cards featured in this chapter.**

 **As you've noticed throughout the series so far, whenever a monster is summoned, I just list its ATK or DEF (whichever position it's in), like how the anime would. But, whenever I use a new, original monster, I'll be sure to list its full stats: Level, Attribute, Types, and ATK or DEF (again, depending on its position).**

 **Lastly, Huzzah! This chapter is the second in a row to feature a duel, so I've broken my previous pattern! :P …yeah, next chapter most likely won't have a duel in it :P**

 **Anyways, on with the story!**

Tsubasa hummed cheerfully to herself as she walked the streets of Leo Town, with a basket in hand. While she smiled brightly with thoughts of sharing the treats inside with her favorite upperclassmen, she also kept a cautious eye on Miyata, who was eyeing the basket intently, her mouth visibly watering as she could smell the freshly-baked goods inside.

"C'mon, Tsubasa! Just one…?" She pleaded.

"N-no," Tsubasa refused, holding the basket protectively. "They're for Yuna-senpai!"

She arrived in the town square, to find that a duel was already underway, and an enthusiastic audience had gathered to watch.

"I-is that it?" Tsubasa knew this must be the duel that Nagisa had told her about: Yuna's first assessment test. She very quickly spotted Yuna on one side of the crowded square, though she couldn't quite tell who she was dueling against.

"Y'know, if we just bought some sweets at the Chateau, maybe we could have caught Alice's duel with Angela too." Miyata sighed, disappointed she didn't get to see this duel from the start.

"I couldn't do that!" Tsubasa flustered, as she waded her way to the front of the audience to get a clear look at the battle taking place. "I had to make something special for Yuna-senpai."

She could tell that what was currently taking place was not an Action Duel, because Yuna and whoever her opponent was were both standing quite stationary on opposite ends of the square's arena, and knew that there were no Action Cards to be found.

"I thought she would be dueling Akira?" Miyata commented, catching up to Tsubasa.

"Uh?" Tsubasa blinked.

"Look." Miyata pointed directly ahead; sure enough, Akira Yushida, GDS's Star Xyz Duelist, was standing front and center of the crowd directly opposite the two Junior students.

Tsubasa looked to her right, and was surprised to see who Yuna was dueling against….

 **Love and Duels in Full Bloom**

 **Seventh Tribulation**

"We're pretty popular today, huh Akira?"

"Yeah, I'd say so, Tia…"

Indeed, few could pry their eyes away from Akira, or the girl accompanied her. She was very lean, with dark skin, short bright red hair, deep gold eyes, and even though her mouth was closed, a single sharp tooth could be seen poking out. While Akira was dressed modestly, with a blue jacket over a black tanktop and dark athletic pants, Tia was dressed very unusually for autumn, coming on winter, with only a light green tank top that exposed her navel and very small denim shorts; she wasn't even wearing shoes.

However, it was hardly just her lack of shoes, or warmer clothing that had heads turning to Akira or her friend Tia, the latter of whom was playfully straddling Akira's arm.

"I think they might have the wrong idea about us…" Akira muttered sheepishly.

"Uh?" Tia blinked curiously. "Whatdya mean?"

"Well…" Akira blushed. "Normally, when someone wraps their arms around someone like you're doing now, it's usually a sign that they're a couple."

"You mean we're not?" Tia asked curiously.

"We're just good friends, aren't we?" Akira clarified.

"Yup!" Tia gave a chipper nod.

"Well, normally, clinging like this something that lovers do, not friends." Akira explained. "…Then again, friends don't usually kiss each other on the mouth…"

"That's just how people express their friendliness where I come from~!" Tia chirped.

Akira chuckled as she and Tia came upon the town square. The two sat on the edge of a fountain in its center, where Akira planned to meet with Yuna for her first test.

"You two make quite the cute couple~!" Angela remarked as she walked by.

"Thanks!" Tia giggled.

"We're not a couple…" Akira sighed, blushing.

"Riiiiight," Masumi smirked as she joined in the conversation. "Next you're going to tell us that the Headmistress actually let a male teacher work at GDS."

"Tell me you two aren't just here to make fun of me." Akira muttered awkwardly.

"I just got done testing Alice," said Angela. "So now I felt like coming by to see the show."

"And you know why I'm here." Masumi smirked.

Akira eyed Masumi uncertainly. Sure, she knew exactly what Masumi was talking about, but the agreement that they had come to…

"So, how'd the maid girl do?" asked Masumi. "I wanted to come see her in action myself, but I got held up."

"On the phone with your girlfriend again?" Akira teased.

"I'd hardly call Yuzu a 'girlfriend.'" Masumi pouted, though she hid her face as she turned dark red. "Not when she chose that run-down little playhouse she calls a Duel School over me…"

"At least you two have girlfriends…" Angela grumbled. "No one, boy or girl, wants someone who looks like a little kid."

"She's not my girlfriend!" Akira and Masumi shouted together.

It wasn't long before Yuna arrived in the town square, with her friends in tow. She easily spotted Akira from the crowd, and hurried to meet her by the fountain.

"Hey, Akira." She called. She stopped short as she saw Tia, Masumi, and Angela, and took a small step back in intimidation. "Er, wh-why are they here? Are they…? They're not part of the test, are they?"

"No, no, don't worry about them." Akira assured her.

Yuna nodded, understanding. She pulled out her duel disk, and equipped it, aimed at Akira. She was afraid that she wouldn't be able to stand up to one of the Five Stars just yet, but she had no interest in cowering from the challenge that had been issued…

"What are you doing?" asked Akira. "You're not dueling me."

Yuna froze just as she inserted her cards into the deck slot. "…No? I thought everyone had to duel against their respective Star?"

"We'll duel at some point, but not this time." Akira clarified.

"Then, who's my opponent?" asked Yuna.

Masumi stepped forward, and pointed directly behind Yuna. "Her."

Yuna turned around, dumbfounded to see that Masumi was pointing directly at…

"Reiko?!" Yuna gasped.

"Me?!" Reiko exclaimed.

"You think it was just a coincidence that you two were given a test in Leo Town at the same time?" Masumi laughed derisively.

"Well, Alice had one in town today too, so… yeah." Reiko shrugged.

"Oh, yeah." Masumi muttered awkwardly. "Anyway, you both know what this means, right? Whoever loses this duel will be eliminated; only the winner will still have a chance to represent GDS. You both understand this?"

Both Yuna and Reiko acknowledged.

"Your new deck is ready, I assume?" Masumi's deep red eyes fell on Reiko, who nodded at this question. Yuna wanted to ask her what Masumi was talking about, but Akira led her and Reiko away from the fountain, to the center of a large formation that broke the cobblestone street.

On one side, there were ten rectangular black slate tiles, while the other side had ten white slate tiles lined identically.

"A duel arena?" Yuna identified the pattern almost instantly.

"That's right." Akira nodded. "I want to assess your skills in a normal duel; without any Action Cards to help you."

This was good to know, Yuna thought; after watching Alice's intense duel with Angela, she knew that she couldn't handle an Action Duel at the moment.

Reiko grinned as she looked at the hand-made duel arena, aware that this was a popular spot for dueling, especially as she noticed that some passersby were turning their attention here.

"Heads or tails?" said Akira, as she showed the two duelists a gold coin she pulled out. "Call it."

"Tails?" Yuna said.

The coin made a loud, ringing 'ping' sound as Akira flipped it high into the air, before it clattered to the ground. After bouncing and rolling for a few seconds, everyone looked over it to see that it read heads, granting the first turn to Reiko.

"First time in a long time since we've dueled each other, huh?" Reiko said sheepishly as she and Yuna exchanged decks, and began shuffling.

"Yeah….." Yuna said uncertainly. This was hardly the same as the duels that she and Reiko had back in middle school. As she shuffled Reiko's deck, she couldn't control herself as she heaved a sigh.

"I know," Reiko nodded, understanding what Yuna was thinking. "The stakes are a little intimidating, right?"

Yuna nodded uncomfortably. She and Reiko returned their decks to one another, then turned to take their places on opposite sides of the arena.

"DUEL!"

 **Reiko: 4000**

 **Yuna: 4000**

"I have the first turn," said Reiko. "So, I'll start this duel by summoning Gemstone Dragon Sapphire Drake in Attack Mode!" A high-pitched screeching roar could be heard as a small dragon appeared, its hide coated in lustrous sapphires.

Gemstone Dragon Sapphire Drake  
Level 4 WIND  
Dragon/Effect  
ATK: 1900

"And now, Sapphire Drake's effect: When it's summoned, or once per turn, during my Standby Phase, I can add one Fusion Spell Card from my deck, to my hand." She pulled the listed card from her deck, and showed it to Yuna before putting it in her hand.

Yuna's eyes widened as she saw the colorful vortex depicted on the card Reiko had just added to her hand.

 _"_ _Is that what she had been doing with Masumi..?!"_

"I set one card face-down, and I end my turn." Reiko concluded. "Your move, Yuna."

Yuna nodded, and drew. She looked disappointed at her hand; there were no monsters whose ATK could match up to Sapphire Drake's 1900. Thankfully, she wasn't totally defenseless either.

"I summon Water Magician in Attack Mode." She was accompanied by a female magician with rather simple blue and green robes, and an equally simple staff (ATK: 1400). "I set two face-down cards, and end my turn."

"Then it's my move." As she made her opening draw, Reiko looked at Yuna uncertainly. _"She's not holding back on me, is she?"_ She wondered.

"With Sapphire Drake's effect, I can add a Fusion Spell Card from my deck to my hand during my Standby Phase. So now, I add Gemstone Dragon Fusion to my hand. Then, I activate Polymerization, and Fuse Gemstone Dragon Sapphire Drake, and the Gemstone Dragon Topaz Wyvern in my hand."

"What?!" Yuna gasped.

A massive vortex of blue and violet formed behind Reiko, consuming Sapphire Drake in a bright blue light, and Topaz Wyvern in a golden light; each of which began to swirl into one another.

" **Blue dragon who bears the stone of wisdom and clarity, join with the Gold dragon imbued with great strength! Fusion Summon!** Come forth: Gemstone Dragon Emerald Elder!" The vortex turned a brilliant green, and from its center emerged a gigantic winged dragon with four horns in a crown pattern, a short, wispy beard, and a brilliant hide that was covered in gleaming emeralds.

Gemstone Dragon Emerald Elder  
Level 6 Wind  
Dragon/Fusion/Effect  
ATK: 2400

 _"_ _Reiko never had any of these cards before!"_ Yuna thought, intimidated as the emerald-scaled dragon loomed over her. Just then, she was reminded horribly of Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and how easily it had destroyed her.

"Emerald Elder, attack Water Magician!" Reiko called. " _Emerald Blaze!_ " A jet of green fire burst from the dragon's mouth, but Yuna quickly responded:

"I activate Rush Recklessly! This gives my Water Magician an extra 700 ATK!"

"Wrong!" Reiko interjected. "Emerald Elder's effect allows me to negate and destroy a Spell Card once during my turn."

Yuna's Spell shattered uselessly, but she did have another card to save her: "Then I activate my Trap: Kunai With Chain! This switches an attacking monster into Defense Mode, and gives my monster an additional 500 ATK."

A bladed weapon attached to a chain shot out of the activated card, its chain wrapping around Emerald Elder, and flying back towards Yuna's field, where it was caught by Water Magician, who pulled hard on the chain, forcing the dragon into a submissive position.

(Emerald Elder DEF: 1400)

(Water Magician ATK: 1400 – 1900)

"Wow, that was a surprisingly well-coordinated move." Akira commended. "Not only did she prevent Reiko's attack, but she simultaneously powered up her own monster."

"This duel is far from over." Masumi smirked, as she sat comfortably to watch the show. "Reiko might not be the sharpest of stones, but her eyes have a prominent luster."

"Well, you do have an eye for talent." Akira grinned.

"They both remind me of Yuzu, in a funny sort of way." Masumi said with amusement, as she looked over at Yuna. "She's always so nervous, so unsure of herself; her eyes lack much luster, but if they weren't so clouded, they might shine brilliantly." She turned to Reiko. "Meanwhile, her eyes' luster shows clearly, though it remains to be seen whether that's truly how they shine, or if it's only an illusion that she's casting."

"That's pretty impressive." Akira marveled. "What do you see when you look at my eyes?" She turned to Masumi, as if making sure that she got a clear look at her differently-colored eyes.

"Hm…" Masumi muttered. "One shows magnificent luster; the other, none whatsoever."

"…R-really?" Akira looked baffled at Masumi.

"No, not really." Masumi chuckled as she smirked playfully, with a flip of her long hair. "That was just a joke."

"You're a jerk." Akira pouted.

Despite her initial attack failing, Reiko didn't call it a turn just yet:

"I activate my Quick-Play Spell: Crystal Reflection. With this, your Water Magician is switched to Defense Mode, and I'm able to switch one of my Gemstone Dragons' positions as well."

(Emerald Elder: ATK: 2400)

(Water Magician DEF: 1000)

"Now, let's try that again! _Emerald Blaze!_ " Once again, Emerald Elder spewed brilliant green fire from its mouth, and eliminated Water Magician easily. "And, because of Crystal Reflection's effect, my Gemstone Dragons also deal piercing damage."

(Yuna: 4000 – 2600)

"I set a face-down, and now my turn's done."

 _"_ _She turned that whole Battle Phase around so easily."_ Yuna thought fearfully as she observed her hand with the card she had just pulled.

With no monsters on her field, she couldn't summon anything stronger; certainly nothing strong enough to take on Emerald Elder.

"I set a monster face-down." She sighed, disappointed that she had to resort to this strategy. "And another card face-down. I'm done."

Reiko watched Yuna with concern as her turn began. She didn't even look at the card she drew as she wondered just what was going on in Yuma's mind. Was she tempted to quit? Perhaps unwilling to be dueling her best friend?

"I summon Gemstone Dragon Ruby Salamander." Reiko's large dragon was accompanied by a smaller one coated with bright red rubies, and possessing a pair of muscular-looking arms, apparently compensating for its seemingly vestigial wings.

Gemstone Dragon Ruby Salamander  
Level 4 Wind  
Dragon/Effect  
ATK: 1600

"And now I activate Ruby Salamander's special ability: Once per turn, I can destroy one spell or trap on your field." Ruby Salamander dashed past the silhouette resembling Yuna's face-down monster, and crushed the pending trap card with a strike from its crystalline claws.

"And you take 500 points of damage for every card destroyed by this effect."

(Yuna: 2600 – 2100)

"Now, Emerald Elder! Destroy Yuna's face-down monster!"

Yuna's field was wiped clean in a burst of green flames, and she stepped back, frightened for another pending attack from Ruby Salamander…

"Relax." Reiko chuckled. "Ruby Salamander can't battle on the turn that it used its effect, so I'm done for now. Your move."

"Oh…" Yuna said blankly. "Er… right."

"What's her problem?" Angela wondered aloud. "She hasn't made one attack against Reiko at all this duel. It's like she's not even trying to!"

Akira watched her with concern as well. "I've heard that those two have been friends since they were very little." She mused. "Could it be that Yuna doesn't want to duel? …Or, that she's trying to lose on purpose?"

"If that's the case, she should be disqualified right here and now...!" Masumi growled.

"If I need to, then I will." Akira stated. "But something tells me that it's not quite that simple."

When Yuna made her opening draw, she was glad to see that the card she pulled was a Pendulum Monster.

 _"_ _If only I had the other one too…"_ She thought, but as she read the monster's Pendulum Effect, she had an idea:

"I set the Scale 7 Sea Dragoons of Draconia in the Pendulum Scale!" A single column of light ascended behind her, encapsulating an armored soldier with a harpoon gun riding on the back of a blue sea dragon. "And then, I summon one monster face-down, and end my turn."

"Gotta do better than that, Yuna!" Reiko commented. "Ruby Salamander, take out her face-down monster!"

The red-jeweled dragon eagerly jumped into action, looking to smash this face-down just like it had the last turn, only for it to be forced back, as the card flipped over, and a giant turtle emerged, carrying a small island on its back. (Island Turtle ATK: 2000)

"Really, Yuna?" Reiko laughed aloud. "I used to get you with that lame trick all the time back in middle school!"

(Reiko: 4000 – 3600)

"That's why I thought you wouldn't see it coming." Yuna teased.

"Well, my Battle Phase isn't done yet." Reiko reminded her. "Emerald Elder, attack Island Turtle! _Emerald Blaze!_ "

"Exactly what I was hoping for!" Yuna smiled as her monster was destroyed. "Because of Sea Dragoon's Pendulum Effect, I can Special Summon a Normal monster to my field every time a monster is destroyed by battle! So now, come forth! Spiral Serpent!"

Her signature monster splashed out of the fountain, making a loud, screeching roar as it swam through the air to Yuna's field. (ATK: 2900)

"Well then, my turn's over." Reiko shrugged, grinning. She was glad to see that Yuna was putting up a fight.

"My turn." Yuna knew exactly what to do when she drew her next card:

"I'm going to attack!" Yuna declared. "Spiral Serpent, destroy Emerald Elder! Spiral Wave!" Spiral Serpent shot a jet of spiraling water at the green dragon, destroying it easily.

(Reiko: 3600 – 3100)

"But I'm not finished yet: because of Sea Dragoon's Pendulum Effect, I can Special Summon another Normal monster to my field. Come on out, Terrorking Salmon!" A very large, sinister grey and red fish now jumped from the fountain, already poised to attack (ATK: 2400). "Now, attack Emerald Elder!"

Reiko staggered back as her new ace monster was destroyed, her field totally cleaned of all monsters.

(Reiko: 3100 - 2300)

"I'll end my turn." Yuna concluded.

Reiko was silent for a moment, clearly stunned by this big turn of events. She turned her head down, one hand covering her face.

"R-Reiko?" Yuna watched her friend worriedly as she began shaking, her breathing shallow. She wondered for a moment if she had gone too far; acted too aggressively in her attacks. Afraid that Reiko was crying in despair, she stepped towards Reiko, however, it was to watch the tomboy throw back her head, audibly laughing joyfully.

"Man, the duels we had back in middle school were never this awesome!" She laughed. "I can't remember the last time I had so much fun playing this game!"

Yuna staggered back, surprised by her friend's response.

"Okay, it's my turn." Reiko smiled as she drew. "And I'll start by activating Monster Reborn, to call Emerald Elder back to my field! And then, I activate the Field Spell: Gemstone Dragon's Lair – Crystal Cave!"

The day lit sky went dark as the entire field was shrouded in rock, but the darkness didn't last too long, as the cave was beautifully illuminated by a variety of colorful gems and crystals that encompassed the field.

"Crystal Cave raises all 'Gemstone Dragon' Monsters' ATK by 500. (Emerald Elder ATK: 2400 – 2900) Now, take out Terrorking Salmon! _Emerald Blaze!_ "

Yuna wiped sweat from her face as her fish monster was easily fried by the dragon's green fire. (Yuna: 2100 – 1600)

"My turn." Yuna declared as she drew with new-found energy. After seeing Reiko laugh and enjoy this duel, even in spite of its competitive nature, she felt like she could do the same.

"I activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more cards." Since her hand was empty save for this card, being able to draw two more seemed like a blessing now; especially after seeing what she got out of it. "Then, I activate the Spell Dark Factory of Mass Production! This allows me to return two Normal Monsters from my graveyard to my hand. And with that, I end my turn."

"Wha…?" Reiko blinked. "R-really?"

"Yeah." Yuna confirmed. "Why?"

"…Just, seemed like you were building up to something, y'know?" Reiko shrugged. "But… okay, my turn, I guess…." She looked at her hand, but couldn't find anything very useful to her. "I'm done." She shrugged.

"Really?" Yuna teased as her turn began. "Now who was being anti-climactic?" She drew, and gasped excitedly, as she saw exactly the card she needed. "It's ready!"

"What's ready?" Reiko asked, in unison with Masumi and Akira.

"With my Scale 3 Foucault's Cannon, and the Scale 7 Sea Dragoons of Draconia already in play, I now set the Pendulum Scales!" As she slapped the card down onto her duel disk opposite Sea Dragoons, the entire face of the blade illuminated with the word PENDULUM in bright rainbow letters. A second pillar now stood next to the one already behind Yuna, each one now brilliantly lit with a golden number '3' and '7'. "Now, I'm able to simultaneously Special Summon any number of monsters whose levels are between 4 and 6.

" **From the ocean's depths, I call upon you!** **Pendulum Summon!** Come forth! Water Magician (ATK: 1400), and Island Turtle (DEF: 2000)!"

"Nicely done," Reiko marveled as she looked over Yuna's field. "But those won't be enough to stand up to Emerald Elder."

"I disagree." Yuna smiled. "I activate an Equip Spell: United We Stand! Now, for every monster I have on my field, Spiral Serpent gains 800 ATK. And with 3 currently on my field…"

(Spiral Serpent ATK: 2900 – 5300)

"Whoa, that's a lot of attack points…!" Reiko quivered.

"Spiral Serpent, attack Gemstone Dragon Emerald Elder with United Spiral Wave!" Both Water Magician and Island Turtle added their powers to Spiral Serpent, who fired three swirling watery vortexes at Emerald Elder, who was swept away in the destructive wave, also blowing Reiko back as well.

(Reiko: 2300 – 0)

 **Winner: Yuna**

The crowd that had gathered around the town square cheered uproariously as the duel came to a climactic conclusion, and as their monsters dissipated, Yuna and Reiko met up in the middle of the arena to shake hands; while Reiko smiled proudly at Yuna, Yuna only weakly smiled back, not sure if she should be taking any kind of pride in her win.

"Hey," Reiko said happily. "You did great. Show a little enthusiasm, why don't ya?"

"But, you lost, so…" Yuna muttered.

"Please, like I ever really be the academy's representative?" Reiko scoffed. "Besides, that's not what mattered to me; I got to have a really fun duel with my best friend, and that's all that really matters."

Yuna nodded, putting on a smile as she agreed with Reiko. "It was a fun duel." She admitted. "I just wish I could have improved my deck the same way you did for yours."

As the applause died down, and the audience started to thin, Akira and Masumi joined the participants of the recent duel; Masumi spoke first, arms crossed with disappointment:

"You know you're eliminated, right?"

"Yeah." Reiko sighed, shrugging.

"Even so, you've proven that you're more than worthy of the Fusion Course." Masumi commended. "So, I want you to have this." She handed Reiko a card featuring an ornate, crystalline pink rose.

"Crystal Rose?" Reiko read the monster's name. "…A little dainty for my tastes, but thanks."

"That's a special card," Masumi said indignantly. "One that not many Fusion Duelists are given the honor of having in their decks. Use it well."

Yuna eyed Masumi with confusion as she turned away, her face visibly blushing.

"She only gives that card to girls that she really likes." Akira whispered into Yuna's ear. "She apparently gave one to Yuzu as well."

"Yuzu?" Yuna repeated. The name sounded familiar to her. "As in…? You're not talking about…?"

"Yep! She knew THAT Yuzu." Akira grinned. She privately mused for a moment what kind of relationship that Yuzu had with Masumi, before turning her attention back to Yuna:

"Anyways, today's test was meant to observe your abilities outside of an Action Duel; while it's prudent to be able to turn the duel in your favor, it's also important that you be able to rely entirely on the capabilities of your own deck. As such, you've passed your first test, however…"

"Huh?" Yuna's heart sank at this last word.

"No offense, but what I've seen of your deck leaves something to be desired." Akira said. "As such, that will be the basis of your second test: you have one week to improve upon your deck, or, if necessary, you can even create a new deck entirely. I take it you're up to the challenge?"

"Yeah." Yuna nodded.

"Good." Akira smiled approvingly. "Then exactly one week from today, your new deck will be put to the test against your second opponent."

"Who will that be?" asked Yuna. She eyed Akira, nervous about dueling her.

"Not me, if that's what you're thinking." Akira chuckled. "That time will come, I promise, but for now, don't worry about who you're dueling next; instead focus on your deck. I'll even help you out if you want me to."

Yuna appreciated Akira's gesture, but didn't even know where to begin on her deck; the one she currently used was a modification of a starter deck that she had gotten a long time ago. Hotaru and Reiko similarly began with starter decks, but the Gemstone Dragons that Reiko used in her last duel made it evident to Yuna that a starter deck was beneath her.

 _"_ _They've been here for half a year, before I transferred…"_ Yuna realized. _"They've gotten so much stronger than me in that time..."_ The more she thought about it, the more she started to feel wrong for having beaten Reiko; as if she only won because Reiko, like Alice, let her win.

"What's on your mind?" asked Reiko, snapping Yuna out of her stupor.

"Er… nothing." Yuna lied. "Um, so what now?"

"Hm… how about I show you around town?" Reiko offered, to which Yuna agreed.

Following the conclusion of Yuna's duel, Tsubasa only fidgeted nervously as she tried to the best of her abilities to work up the courage to talk to her favorite senpai… both of them! She watched in awe, delighted by the sight of GDS sports star Akira Yushida talking with the academy's newest rising star, Yuna Yozora.

"What're you doing?" Miyata whispered, as the town square had cleared almost completely. "Go on! Talk to her! Show her your delicious cookies!"

"Err, but…" Tsubasa muttered, fidgeting her fingers. "Wait, how do you know…?" She looked over her shoulder to see that Miyata was munching on a cookie she had snatched from Tsubasa's basket. "M-Miyata! Those are for Yuna-senpai! Don't just take them!"

"It's not fair, though." Miyata pouted as she gnawed on her stolen sweets. "You never cook me anything this sweet and delicious. I mean, we've been in the same class together since kindergarten. We're practically a newlywed couple by now!"

"E-eh?!" Tsubasa froze, simultaneously confounded by the logic that she had been presented with, and highly embarrassed by the romantic implication behind Miyata's proclamation. "Uh, M-Miyata, do you know what you said just now?" She flustered. "I mean, you and I, we're not like…"

"Hey, where are they going?" Miyata said.

"Huh?" Tsubasa blinked. Sure enough, just as she looked up, Yuna and Reiko had disappeared into town. "Ah! Senpai!" She frantically made chase after Yuna.

 **To Be Continued…..**

 **If Gemstone Dragons Sapphire Drake and Emerald Elder seemed familiar to you somehow, it's because they're retrained versions of Luster Dragons #1 and #2 respectively. And, I'm thinking of having retrained versions of the other few "Gem Dragons", like Alexandrite Dragon, and Hyozanryu.**

 **See, when I first created Yuna, Reiko, and Hotaru, and was developing decks for them, I tried to think of what their ace monsters would be, specifically classic Normal Monsters, and build decks themed around those cards: For Reiko, it was Luster Dragon 2, for Hotaru, it was Trance the Magic Swordsman (Well, it was Neo, actually, since Trance is much more recent, but oh well), and… well, I didn't have anything real specific for Yuna, but I knew that I wanted to give her Water Monsters, and Spiral Serpent sort of became her Ace.**

 **...Also, I will fully admit that I didn't really know how to end this chapter ^^;;**

 **Anyway, the next chapter will be more relaxed, as Yuna gets ready for her next duel, learns more about the school, and has some fun times with her friends :3**

 **See you then!**


	8. Eighth Acceleration

For the past two days, the skies had been darkened by grey clouds, and GDS had seen an almost constant downpour, and at the end of every class, the teachers reminded their students to carry an umbrella.

As Celeste opened her own umbrella, which bore a very distinct shade of royal purple, she noticed a pair of girls huddled together under one umbrella as they walked to their next class. She smiled at the sight of the pair, feeling somehow envious of them.

Celeste, whether due to her boyish appearance, or her unique speech mannerisms, somehow always had a way of naturally standing out, no matter where she was. As timid and socially awkward as she was, she had also become accustomed to having all eyes on her; as they certainly were right now.

"Ooh, how I'd LOVE to walk to class sharing an umbrella with The Prince~!" She heard a group of friends giggle delightedly as they passed by.

 _"_ _I guess it does have a rather distinct appearance…"_ Celeste mused, as she looked up at her own umbrella. Scanning the walkways around her, she didn't see anyone whose umbrella bore anything close to the vivid color her own exhibited. _"That couldn't be an accident; Yurihime knew exactly how much it would make me stand out when she gave it to me!"_

She stopped just as she turned off of the normally traveled route between classes, as she heard someone running and panting raggedly. She turned around, just in time to see one girl very clearly drenched by the rain, carrying her schoolbag over her head to try to shelter herself from the rain.

 _"_ _Must have lost her umbrella?"_ Celeste thought. She was ready to continue on her way, until she heard the girl yelp as she fell down in the slippery, deeply-soaked grass.

"Are you alright?" asked Celeste caringly as she hurried to the girl, holding her umbrella over her to shield her from the downpour. "Did you forget your umbrella?"

"No," The girl sighed as she got to her feet. "Reiko stole mine because she lost hers. So, here I am left to…" She went quiet as she looked up to see who she was speaking to. "Ah, P-Prince?!"

"Hotaru?" Celeste said, a note of amused surprise in her voice. "I hope you're prepared for the test I have planned for you."

"I would say that I am." Hotaru replied, giving a slight shiver. "…If I can get to my next class without having to swim there, at least."

Celeste chuckled at Hotaru's joke, and held her umbrella out. "Here you go."

Hotaru gazed at The Prince with disbelief. "S-seriously?"

"Oui." Celeste grinned. "I think you need it more than I do."

"Um… thank you." Hotaru said, pleased but confused. "I'll return it first chance I get, promise!" She called as she hurried off to her next class.

 _"_ _Don't worry about that."_ Celeste smiled weakly as she waved Hotaru off.

She continued on her way, barely minding the rain as she traveled uphill onto a walkway lined with finely-cut slate stepping stones leading up a small hill, upon which stood a greenhouse, separated from the rest of the Academy.

As Celeste stepped into the greenhouse, she was hit by a wave of warm air that heavily contrasted the autumn cold outside, and she was met by the sight of countless gorgeously colorful flowers, each one healthy and vibrant, clearly having seen very much love and care.

Walking towards the center of the greenhouse was a girl who was one year older than Celeste, with very long, flowing honey blond hair. She had a very calm, pleasant air about her as she serenely watered the various flowers that colored the greenhouse, her deep blue eyes turned up at the rain that tapped on the transparent roof above her; her face fairly perplexed.

"I wonder, Prince." She mused aloud, not looking away from the clouded sky. "Which is truly happier? A flower that blooms naturally in the wild; one that also faces the dangers of the wild? Or, one that blooms in the safety of a greenhouse, never to know the world it looks out upon?"

Celeste was stunned silent, left with no idea how to answer, or even what to think.

"If flowers could speak, I wonder what they would say. Would they see this greenhouse as a paradise? Or, is it seen as a prison to them?"

"I… I don't know…" Celeste said honestly. "That's…. a very complicated question."

"And what about a flower that's only known the greenhouse its whole life, only to be released into the world?" Yurhime continued her musing. "Will it know true happiness breathing the open air? Or, will it long to return to the safe confines of the home it's always known?"

"…It depends on the flower, I suppose?" Celeste shrugged, lost for any other possible answer.

"I suppose you're right…" Yurihime sighed, clearly still deep in thought. "If you think about it, our academy is a greenhouse that shelters many budding flowers, but one day, after they bloom, they'll have to leave their safe haven. Will it be for better, or for worse?"

"What are you trying to say?" asked Celeste, not sure at this point whether to be confused or worried for her senpai.

"Oh, nothing." Yurhime giggled lightly as she rounded the greenhouse to make sure every flower was perfectly healthy and well-nourished. "Just a little nervous about my coming exams." She put down her watering can, only now noticing that her underclassman had been lightly soaked in the rain; too lightly, given the rapid pounding of raindrops on the roof. "What happened to your umbrella?"

"Oh? I… lost it in my room somewhere." Celeste invented feebly. "…I'm sure that it'll turn up sooner or later."

Yurihime didn't show Celeste her face as she smirked, not believing her lie one bit. "Well, I hope whoever you lent it to will return it soon."

Celeste blushed, though she scooted to the side to hide her face from view behind a few hanging plants.

"Who was it that you shared your umbrella with, may I ask?" Yurihime inquired.

"Hotaru Hanazono." Celeste answered.

"Ah, she's the one that you're examining for the representative selection, isn't she?" Yurihime smiled. "You fancy her, don't you?"

Celeste went very red in the face. "…I-I don't know what you're talking about…"

"You wouldn't just give an umbrella to someone you don't care about, would you?" Yurihime teased.

Celeste was silent; her senior wasn't necessarily wrong…

"Anyway," Yurihime said, amused as she looked over the greenhouse. "What brings you here? I'm sure you didn't just come to see the lovely flowers that I'm tending to."

"I want to ask a favor of you," Celeste explained. "I have a test in mind that I would like to give to Hotaru; I want to see her capabilities in a Riding Duel. And since she obviously has no D-Wheel of her own, I would humbly like to ask if she could use yours for the purposes of this test."

"A Riding Duel?" Yurihime looked to Celeste with fascination. "Now that's interesting. Alright, I'll allow it. On one condition."

* * *

 **Love and Duels in Full Bloom**

 **Eighth Acceleration**

* * *

When Hotaru came down for breakfast, she was expecting this morning to be just like any other morning. However, when she went to join her friends at their favorite table, it was to be met by none other than Celeste: the Synchro Star of GDS.

The very sight of the Prince held the undivided attention of everybody in the dining room as she stood proudly, dressed in an extravagant all-white suit, whose tailcoat was trimmed with gleaming gold around the cuffs and collar, with an ornate amethyst brooch fixed to a blue tie.

Hotaru blushed at the mere sight of Celeste, as she understood from looking at her elegant appearance why she was known so far and wide as 'The Prince.'

"Hotaru Hanazono," Celeste called, using a voice that she knew would draw the attention of everybody in the room as she crossed one hand over her heart to give a polite bow. "I formally challenge you to duel me. Will you accept my challenge?"

Excitement filled the dining room, and as Hotaru stood completely speechless at Celeste's display, everyone who bore witness to the Prince in her full regalia murmured with excitement at the idea of seeing her duel.

"Y-yes." Hotaru said simply. "I accept your challenge."

"Then, I will expect to see you on the Dueling Track at 1 o' clock." Celeste stated. She handed Hotaru an envelope addressed to her as she bowed again, and walked away.

Hotaru stood frozen in place as she watched Celeste's billowing coat tails, and the dining room eased back into its normal state, though plenty abuzz with murmurs of excitement at witnessing their Prince taking part in a duel.

"Um, Hotaru?" Yuna called from her table. "Are you coming?"

"Y-yeah." Hotaru snapped herself out of her little trance as she took a seat opposite her friends. She remained awkwardly silent as she sipped her coffee, Celeste and her challenge very much on her mind.

"So, what was that all about?" Reiko wondered, amused as she glanced down at the envelope that Hotaru held. "'I formally invite you to deewwl me~~!'" She imitated Celeste in an almost mocking, flowery voice. "Someone certainly has a flare for the dramatic, am I right?"

"Indeed…" Hotaru muttered as she tore open the envelope to read the letter inside:

 _Hotaru,_

 _Please meet me at the Dueling Track at 12. I am aware that you have experience from the Tops with a D-Wheel, and so, you will be tested in a Riding Duel; as such, preparations will need to be made. In addition, I have an important matter that I wish to discuss with you before we duel, regarding your test for the representative selection, as well as our place in this Academy._

 _-Celeste_

"What does it say?" asked Yuna. Hotaru was quiet for several minutes as she stared at the note. "…Hotaru?"

"It just says to meet her at the track an hour before our duel." Hotaru replied.

"For what?" asked Reiko.

"Riding Duels take some prep time," Hotaru said plainly as she stood. "And I haven't been on a D-Wheel in some time…"

"D-Wheel?" Reiko and Yuna repeated together.

"…I should go." Hotaru stood and left the table, folding up the letter and jamming it into her pocket.

"What was that about?" Reiko shrugged. Yuna shook her head, not sure herself.

* * *

Hotaru hurried back to her room, and wasted no time taking out her deck, seeking to make necessary preparations before the coming duel. However, the more she thought about her coming duel, the less her mind focused on the duel itself, and more on the circumstances surrounding it; circumstances she knew had little, if anything, to do with being GDS's representative.

She recalled a part of Celeste's note: _"You have experience from the Tops with a D-Wheel."_ She knew exactly what The Prince was referring to, prompting her to reflect upon her old life: a time where she lived in wealth, luxury… and deep ignorance. She slid open her desk drawer, to lay her eyes upon two cards that she had stored, vowing never to use them again.

Although she now held onto them to remind her of her shame, she originally wielded these cards proudly in her deck; they were her favorite cards; her best cards, and she achieved nothing but victory after victory every time with them. However, she learned the hard way that every victory came at the expense of others; victory meant pain and despair for those she defeated.

She thought so many times about getting rid of these cards, but knew that she already acted cowardly when she ran away; she would be something far worse than just a coward if she hid her shame by throwing them away.

"Hotaru?"

Hotaru jumped as Yuna stepped through the door. She hastily threw her deck into her desk drawer, and whirled around.

"Yuna?! W-why didn't you knock first?" She snapped.

"Oh," Yuna gasped, only now realizing how rude she was being. "S-sorry… Um… I just wanted to know if you were okay. You've been acting strangely since The Prince's invitation."

"I'm fine, I'm fine…" Hotaru sighed dishonestly. "I'm just… Just a bit nervous, that's all."

"I don't blame you." Yuna said. "I mean, I had a neighbor with one, but I've never ridden a D-Wheel before, let alone dueled on one. It looks scary!"

"It kind of is." Hotaru admitted. "But, that's not the only thing about this duel that's got me so nervous."

"What is it?" asked Yuna. "You know that you can talk to me, Hotaru."

"Well…" Hotaru sighed. "It's a pretty long story. Are you aware of the Four Dimensions?"

"Sort of." Yuna recalled the name some time ago, when she had been helping Kazumi in the library. She had been meaning to ask Kazumi about this, as well as so many other questions on her mind, but was never able to.

"Well… the world we live in is only one of four." Hotaru explained. "It's a world known as the Pendulum Dimension, having been the origin of Pendulum Summoning. Similarly, there are: The Fusion Dimension, Xyz Dimension, and the world that I come from: the Synchro Dimension. And I was a very different person when I lived there. And, that's something I think our Prince knows about."

Yuna remembered when she first met Hotaru in middle school a few years ago. Although she had first come to school dressed in very rich-looking clothes, they appeared ragged and frayed, as if she had seen great hardships. She wanted to ask, but knew it was insensitive to do so; instead, she simply invited Hotaru to be her friend, and do whatever she could to make her feel welcome in her new home.

Reiko had asked where she came from, but Hotaru's only answer was "Somewhere far, far away from here," and she would refuse to answer any further. Now, that answer made perfect sense to Yuna.

"So?" Yuna blinked.

"Huh? 'So?' What do you mean 'so?'" Hotaru asked, flustered.

"I don't care where you came from, or what you were where you came from, Hotaru." Yuna said with a smile. "Because right now, you're my friend."

Hotaru sighed, knowing that Yuna wouldn't understand, but hugged her friend happily anyway. "You don't know what it means to hear you say that, Yuna. I just hope that others would see it the same way."

* * *

The time had finally come for Hotaru to make final preparations for her Riding Duel, and she changed into what, at first, was a very baggy, oversized full-body bike suit in GDS's blue and gold; though, with a simple turn of a switch on the suit's wrist, it tightened, and perfectly conformed to her body.

She sighed as she took up a provided helmet, worrying about whatever The Prince would have to say to her as she left the changing room, and went to the garage, which was lined with a variety of motorcycles; some clearly being personally owned, while others were simplistically and uniformly designed, clearly academy provided.

Despite the extravagant way she had dressed earlier, Celeste was donned in much more simplistic clothes for her Riding Duel: a black leather jacket and boots, well-padded pants interwoven with kneepads and shin guards, and a very old helmet that had obviously seen very much use, its paint faded, chipped, and scratched to the point that Hotaru had no idea what it would have looked like when it was brand new.

"Surprised to see me wear something so humble?" Celeste smiled weakly, not looking Hotaru in the eye.

"Well… yeah." Hotaru admitted. "…So, which one is the costume, then? That regal outfit? Or this new, roguish look?"

"In a way, they're both just costumes, and at the same time, they both reflect the real me." Celeste replied. "I was born into a rich family in the Tops, but, of course, the regal splendor didn't last forever; not after I'd failed my family."

Hotaru cringed, knowing exactly what Celeste was talking about.

"In Synchro Dimension, either you were a champion, and you lived the high life, or you were a failure, and suffered in poverty and oppression." Celeste continued, putting the beaten-up old helmet on. "Few can say they've lived both lives, but I certainly can. I was given the best cards, and the best training, and I was expected to be the best in return." She lowered her helmet's visor as she turned away grimly. "And I failed…"

Hotaru's stomach turned at the delivery of her words, feeling very guilty for the strife she knew that Celeste endured as each of them mounted their D-Wheels.

"Everybody listen!" Nagisa called from the commentator's booth. "It's finally time for the first Riding Duel of the selection exams to get underway! First up, is the Shooting Synchro Star of GDS: Prince Celeste!"

Very loud cheers sounded from the audience as the Prince drove out into the dueling track through a burst of smoke and colorful sparks on the back of a sleek white and black-trimmed D-Wheel; the front of which resembled a horse in full gallop.

"And next is her challenger; she's smart, she's cute, and she's no stranger to the dueling track: Hotaru Hanazono!"

Yuna and Reiko were among the loudest cheers in the audience as Hotaru drove out onto the field, looking up at the commentator's box with disappointment at such a lacking introduction. Though, she admitted that she didn't exactly have the same kind of flair that Celeste displayed, given that both her outfit and D-Wheel were borrowed; academy provided.

"Are you ready?" asked Celeste as Hotaru pulled up to the starting line next to her.

"As I'll ever be…" Hotaru muttered.

"Then I activate Speed World Neo Accel!"

As the duel mode for each bike engaged, and the autopilot activated, Hotaru spotted what were unmistakably Action Cards scattering across the field.

The moment the starting whistle blew, both D-Wheels rocketed passed the starting line, and though Hotaru kept up really well, Celeste was well ahead of her, easily making the first curve, and claiming the first turn.

"DUEL!"

 **Hotaru: 4000 Celeste: 4000**

"I'll start this duel by summoning Shield Wing in Defense Mode!" Celeste declared. A small green dragon emerged from a portal behind her, and soared on her tail, its wings crossed defensively (LV 2 DEF: 900). "And that's the end of my turn."

"Wait, how can she do that?" asked Yuna. "I thought you couldn't Normal Summon monsters in face-up Defense Mode?"

"You can in a Riding Duel." Yuna jumped as Kazumi appeared by her side, taking a seat just behind her in the stands.

"K-Kazumi?!"

"I was intrigued when I heard that The Prince had challenged Hotaru to a Riding Duel, so I just had to see it for myself." Kazumi said enthusiastically.

"How do these Riding Duels work?" asked Yuna. "I know the rules are different, but…"

"The first change is that monsters summoned in Defense Mode can only be summoned face-up." Kazumi explained. "However, the real difference in a Riding Duel will show itself during Hotaru's turn."

"It's my turn." Hotaru declared. "Draw!"

 **Hotaru SC: 1**  
 **Celeste SC: 1**

"I summon Neo, the Magic Swordsman in Attack Mode!" A young warrior jumped through a portal at Hotaru's side; a sword in one hand, and a wisp of blue light in the other (LV 4 ATK: 1700). "And then, I attack your Shield Wing! _Magic Slash!_ " Neo charged at the opposing monster, and brought its sword down on his enemy, only to stagger back as his sword bounced off of the dragon's crossed wings."

"Twice per turn, Shield Wing can't be destroyed by battle." Celeste grinned. "You'll have to work a bit harder to get through this defense!"

"Then, I'll end my turn." Hotaru decided.

"And my turn begins." Celeste stated, performing her opening draw.

 **Hotaru SC: 2**  
 **Celeste SC: 2**

"And I summon Speed Warrior!" A humanoid shape in an all-concealing pilot's helmet and suit skated onto the field in front of Shield Wing. (LV 2 ATK: 900) "And, since he was Normal Summoned this turn, Speed Warrior's ATK is doubled! (Speed Warrior ATK: 900 – 1800) Now attack Neo the Magic Swordsman!"

With impressive speed and agility, the monster dashed across the arena, dodged a slash from Neo's sword, and with landed a skillful spinning kick, which shattered Neo instantly. (Hotaru: 4000 – 3900)

"I set one face-down card, and end my turn. And with that, Speed Warrior's ATK returns to normal." (Speed Warrior ATK: 1800 – 900)

 **Hotaru SC: 3**  
 **Celeste SC: 3**

When Hotaru made her opening draw, her stomach turned uncomfortably as she saw what she drew: Arcane Apprentice. With what she had in her hand right now, there was very little she could do to break her current deadlock; at first, she was ready to end her turn, until she saw a gold glimmer out of the corner of her eye. She looked back to spot what was unmistakably an Action Card, giving her an idea.

She swerved her D-Wheel around to snatch up the card that she had passed, and made another sharp turn to get back on track, speeding up to catch back up with Celeste.

"I pay 2 Speed Counters to activate the Action Card Angel Baton. This allows me to draw two cards from my deck, as long as I discard one." (Hotaru SC: 3 – 1)

"Okay, I'm not following this…" Reiko said, scratching her head.

"During a Riding Duel, each duelist gains 1 Speed Counter at the Standby Phase." Kazumi explained. "And Action Cards can only be activated at the cost of those Speed Counters. However, that's not the only use for Speed Counters."

Hotaru drew two cards from her deck, happily exchanging them for Arcane Apprentice, which she discarded.

"I'm going to summon Defender, The Magical Knight in Defense Mode." A warrior decked out in very bulky, sturdy armor emerged in front of her, bringing down a massive shield (LV 4 DEF: 2000). "And when Defender is Normal Summoned, he gains one Spell Counter." The red crest in the center of its shield glowed. "And then I activate Double Summon, allowing me to Normal Summon again this turn, allowing me to bring out Breaker, the Magic Warrior." Defender was accompanied by a combat-ready mage dressed in red, a sword at the ready (LV 4 ATK: 1600).

"And when he's Normal Summoned, Breaker also gains a Spell Counter, raising his ATK by 300." The crest in Breaker's sword glowed like Defender's shield (ATK: 1600 – 1900).

"Very interesting." Kazumi smiled, watching the duel with great intrigue. "The Prince put up a strong defense and equally strong offense, which Hotaru matched spectacularly."

"All these Counters, though. Geez…" Reiko sighed. "I remember she used to use coins to keep track of the Spell Counters on her monsters back in middle school. Sometimes, we needed to chip in, because she put so many on her cards."

"Ah, so she uses a Spell Counter deck, does she?" Kazumi raised her eyebrows. "Then this IS going to be interesting.

"Next, I activate Breaker's effect: by removing his Spell Counter, I can destroy one Spell or Trap on your field." With a swing of his sword, Breaker slashed the face-down card. (Breaker The Magic Warrior ATK: 1900 – 1600)

"And now, I'm going to attack! Destroy Speed Warrior!" Although the speedy fighter tried to evade the battle mage, it was no match, and was destroyed in a single slash.

(Celeste: 4000 – 3300)

"I set one card face-down, and end my turn."

 _"_ _Why did she look so desperate to get rid of that card?"_ Celeste wondered curiously. She recalled that when Hotaru played the Action Card, there was one card that she seemed more than eager to be rid of, discarding it before she had even fully drawn the two she got from Angel Baton. _"Could that have been…?"_ She frowned as she began her turn, silently drawing her next card.

 **Hotaru SC: 2**  
 **Celeste SC: 4**

"Your dueling's changed, and yet your deck hasn't." said Celeste as she looked over her hand to figure out her next move. "I remember how your tactics used to be: aggressive, unrelenting, merciless. And yet, you've set up a solid defense to compliment a modest offense; nothing like the Hotaru I'd dueled before."

"Dueled before?" Yuna and Reiko repeated, neither one of them having any clue what the Prince was talking about.

There were similar murmurs across the crowd musing over this exchange.

"I don't know what you mean," Hotaru frowned. "But the Hotaru that you're referring to no longer exists."

"You don't remember me?" Celeste frowned. "I suppose everyone looks the same to you when you've defeated them, but I'm not planning on losing this time. I summon the Tuner Monster Junk Synchron!"

A tiny mechanical orange man with an engine on its back, and wore a long white scarf and big, wide glasses jumped from the summoning portal (LV 3 ATK: 1300).

"Tuner?" Hotaru repeated.

"And you know what that means," Celeste stated. "But first, I activate Junk Synchron's effect: When it's Normal Summoned, I can call one Level 2 or below monster in my Graveyard back to my field. Return, Speed Warrior!" Junk Synchron threw out a hand, creating a new summoning portal, from which Speed Warrior skated out of.

"And now, I Tune my Level 3 Junk Synchron, with my Level 2 Shield Wing!"

Junk Synchron yanked on a pull cord on its side, revving up the engine on its back. The monster transformed into three green rings, which encircled Shield Wing, who disappeared into two stars that aligned perfectly into a straight line inside of the rings.

"Gathering stars will call upon a new power! Become the path its light shines upon. Synchro Summon! Come forth: Level 5 Junk Warrior!"

A brilliant beam of light shot through the three rings, and from them emerged a purple mechanical warrior that bore the same scarf as Junk Synchron, with red headlights for eyes, its right fist clenched, equipped with brass knuckles (LV 5 ATK: 2300).

"And now, Junk Warrior's effect activates," Celeste continued. "He gains the ATK of every monster Level 2 or below on my field, which means that Speed Warrior powers him up as well (Junk Warrior ATK: 2300 – 3200). Junk Warrior, attack Breaker the Magic Warrior! Scrap Fist!"

Junk Warrior flew across the battlefield with its jets, its big metal fist pounding into Breaker, and causing Hotaru to lose control of her bike for a second.

"By removing the Spell Counter placed on Defender, I can prevent one of my monsters from being destroyed by battle." Hotaru stated as she recovered her control over the D-Wheel. "Though, I still take the battle damage." (Hotaru: 3900 – 2300)

"Why do you wish to be GDS's representative, Hotaru Hanazono?" Celeste inquired.

"What?" Hotaru asked, surprised by this sudden question.

"Are you still as competitive as you were before?" Celeste demanded. "Is this your way of climbing to the top, now that the Topsiders/Commons caste system no longer exists in Synchro Dimension?"

"No!" Hotaru shook her head. "I never want to return to such a life; a life where you live in fear of the smallest failures."

"Then why are you pursuing this path?" asked Celeste. "The representative of GDS has the highest of expectations placed upon her shoulders! A true representative is more than just a good card player: She's someone who carries the pride of our academy on her own. Pursue this path, and that's exactly the kind of life that you'll get."

Hotaru had no answer for Celeste. The more she thought about it, the more she realized the Prince was right; that continuing down this path would only be bringing her back to the horrible place that she started from…

"I set a face-down, and end my turn." Celeste said, disappointed by Hotaru's silence.

"It sounds like The Prince takes the representative role very seriously." Yuna mused.

"Not surprising; she was last year's representative, after all." Kazumi grinned. "And, had the staff not decided on electing a first year, I have little doubt she would have been given the title again, with little or no competition."

"Is that why she looks like she wants to run Hotaru down?" Reiko said, alluding to the question the Prince had posed about why Hotaru wanted to be a representative.

"…Kazumi, what do you know about the Synchro Dimension?" asked Yuna.

"Hm?" Kazumi looked at Yuna inquisitively. "Well… until just a few short years ago, they had a very strict, oppressive social caste system, based foremost on one's capabilities as a duelist."

"Celeste mentioned a 'Topsider/Commons system?" Yuna recalled.

"Right; the Tops was a small, yet powerful portion that lived in wealth, privilege, and regal splendor," Kazumi explained. "While the Commons were untouchables; given no money, no rights, no… anything."

"That sounds horrible…" Yuna cringed, scarcely able to imagine what life in the Commons must be like.

"Which is why the system was abolished in recent years." Kazumi nodded. "However, everybody has lived in this caste system their entire lives; so while the Commons might rejoice in their newfound freedoms, many Topsiders are unwilling to relinquish their high status, believing themselves above things such as equality."

"And Hotaru lived in that kind of place?" Reiko grunted. "No wonder she didn't like talking about it."

"It's my turn." Said Hotaru. "Draw!"

 **Hotaru SC: 3**  
 **Celeste SC: 5**

"I activate my face-down: Pitch Black Power Stone. This card is equipped with 3 Spell Counters, and once per turn, I can move one of those Counters to a card that I control, and I give one of those counters to Defender, who I switch to Attack Mode (Defender the Magical Knight SpC: 1 ATK: 1600." The crest on Defender's shield illuminated once more, the magical knight standing ready for whatever attack that could be thrown at it.

"And now, I summon Royal Magic Library in Defense Mode." Outside of the track, a small tower emerged, atop which stood a figure in dark violet robes, an arcane book in his hands (LV 4 DEF: 2000).

"Then, I use Spell Power Grasp: This Spell allows me to place a Spell Counter on one of my monsters, and I chose Breaker (Breaker the Magic Warrior SpC: 1 ATK: 1600 – 1900). In addition, after I use one Spell Power Grasp, I can add another one from my deck to my hand, though I can't use it this turn. And thanks to Royal Magic Library's effect, every time a Spell is activated, it gains a Spell Counter as well (Royal Magic Library SpC: 1)."

"Defender, attack Speed Warrior!" Hotaru commanded. Defender dove in towards Celeste's field to strike down the weaker of her two monsters, but it was no use:

"I activate my Trap: Scrap Iron Scarecrow! Not only is your attack negated, but I'm allowed to set this card face-down again to use next turn."

"Then now it's Breaker's turn!" Hotaru said. "Attack!" With Celeste unable to defend from this next attack, her Speed Warrior was destroyed. (Celeste: 3300 – 2300)

"Without Speed Warrior, Junk Warrior's ATK returns to normal (Junk Warrior ATK: 3200 – 2300). And with that, my turn's done." Hotaru conceded.

 **Hotaru SC: 4**  
 **Celeste SC: 6**

"So now, your aggressive tactics resurface." Celeste observed, eyeing Defender in its now offensive stance.

"Junk Warrior, attack Defender the Magical Knight!" She discarded one card. "And now, by sending Rush Warrior to my graveyard, I can activate its effect, doubling Junk Warrior's ATK for the rest of the battle! (Junk Warrior ATK: 2300 – 4600) Finish this duel! _Rush Fist!_ "

Junk Warrior's entire body turned gold, reflecting Rush warrior, and it vanished in the blink of an eye, Defender being destroyed in a bright flash that occurred so fast, most of the audience didn't even see what had happened.

(Hotaru: 2300 – 800 SC: 4 – 1)

"What happened?" Celeste wondered.

"Phew…" Hotaru panted, barely able to believe she endured this attack herself. "I activated the Action Spell Miracle Accel. By paying 3 of my Speed Counters, my monster wasn't destroyed by battle, and my battle damage was halved."

"When did you even get an Action Card…?" Celeste asked. She played back the last several turns in her mind; nowhere could she recall a point where Hotaru had, or could have, picked up this extra card.

"During my 'resurfacing aggressive tactics.'" Hotaru smirked. "I'm not foolish enough to leave myself exposed like that; which is why I searched the field for an Action Card during my monsters' attacks. Oh, and by the way, since I'd just played a Spell card, a second Spell Counter is placed on Royal Magic Library (SpC: 2).

"You really aren't the same as you were in the Queen's Duel Academy…?" Celeste marveled, impressed by this tactic.

"Queen's Duel Academy?" Yuna and Reiko repeated together. They glanced curiously up at Kazumi, certain that she would have the answers they were looking for.

"It's a very prestigious all-girls Duel Academy in the Synchro Dimension." She explained. "Only the highest-ranking Topsider girls could attend. I'm sorry to say that I don't know very much more beyond that."

"No, I'm not." Hotaru frowned. "After I'd learned about what consequences my victories held, I couldn't stand to continue living in the Tops." She gripped the handlebars of her D-Wheel tightly as her hands started shaking.

"I-I had no idea what I was really doing: I had just been told to win, and to grow stronger, because the more you won, the more you ascended the social ladder, and the higher up you were, the happier you were. But, one day, after I'd failed a training duel, my parents gave me a grave warning. I was shown to…"

"The Underground Labor Facility." Celeste finished. "The absolute bottom rung of the social ladder. A forced labor camp, whose inhabitants slave away, recycling the endless garbage produced by Neo Domino City for the rest of their lives. The place where I was sent when I failed… The place where YOU sent me!"

"W-what?!" Hotaru gasped, her heart almost stopping at Celeste's angry outburst.

"One day, there was a special event held at the Queen's Duel Academy," said the Prince, remembering the event as though it were yesterday. "The winner of which would have a chance to take part in an exhibition match with Jack Atlas for that year's Friendship Cup. And I was moments from claiming victory, but then, I faced you, and in one short duel, you had beaten me down, and everything that I had worked so hard for was all for nothing. I was thrown out of the Queen's Academy, and into the Underground Labor Facility.

"I harbored… so much anger towards you." Celeste sighed, her face relaxing as she gripped her handlebars tightly. "I despised you so much. I despised myself for being so weak…" She shook her head. "I have so many horrible memories of that place, and even life in the Commons after I worked my way out of the facility. And, when you're in such a terrible place, where you have to fight just to have a scrap of food, your mind goes to even more terrible places. I wanted revenge more than anything in the world; I wanted you to pay for every day, every minute, that I suffered in that facility. I wanted YOU to suffer."

"I know you would." Hotaru nodded, trembling so hard. "After I learned about that horrible place, and how many people I had sent there, I couldn't live with myself. I was scared so terribly of going there, I fought even harder to win than ever before, but it wasn't long before I realized how I was dooming everyone who I dueled, even if it wasn't necessarily the Underground Facility they were going to. I couldn't stand to hurt any more people, so I discarded my life as a Topsider, and ran away… like a coward."

However, much to Hotaru's surprised, Celeste shook her head, and looked back at Hotaru with the charming smile that everyone knew the Prince for so well.

"No, it wasn't cowardly of you to run at all." She said honestly. "In fact, I don't think anybody in the Synchro Dimension would have had the courage to run away from such an oppressive social system. I know that I didn't."

Hotaru, still not convinced, looked away nervously. "Why are you telling me all of this?"

"So that you know why this duel is being held." Celeste replied. "For so long, I'd dreamed and planned for revenge; I'd imagined you to be a horrific person, if you could so mercilessly destroy my life. I wanted this duel to see you for what you really are, and how far you've come. But now, after we've both escaped the City's caste system; after that caste system has been abolished, revenge would be completely pointless."

"So, what is this duel, then? Just for fun?"

"Yes," Celeste nodded, smiling. "Just for fun."

"In that case," Hotaru grinned. "I think your fans might've like it more if you wore something a bit more… fancy for this duel." She and Celeste shared a laugh.

"Wow, who'd have guessed our Hotaru would have such a history?" Reiko said, stunned by the exchange the two Riding Duelists just had.

"The Prince went through… through all of that?!" Yuna sobbed, sympathetic for Celeste and her tragic story.

"That does explain her deck's interesting motif." Kazumi mused, fascinated to learn the Prince's history. "…Although, they do remember that they're still in the middle of a duel, right?"

"That's enough with our little trip down memory lane," Hotaru said. "My turn! Draw!"

 **Hotaru SC: 2**  
 **Celeste SC: 7**

"First, I remove the Spell Counter from Breaker the Magic Warrior, to destroy Scrap Iron Scarecrow!" With a slash from Breaker's sword, the face-down card was cut in two, never to be activated again. "And next, I remove a second Spell Counter from Pitch Black Power Stone, and place it on Royal Magic Library. (Pitch Black Power Stone SpC: 2 – 1) (Royal Magic Library SpC: 2 – 3) And now by removing all of its counters, Royal Magic Library allows me to draw an extra card from my hand!" (SpC: 3 – 0)

Hotaru held her breath as she reached for her deck, hoping that she would be granted the card that she needed. In one swift stroke, she drew…

"Perfect! I activate Monster Reborn, and call the Arcane Apprentice in my graveyard to the field!" A small cloaked figure materialized, its face hidden completely in shadows, save for its beady, glowing red eyes. (LV 3 ATK: 1300)

"Wait, when did Arcane Magician go to the graveyard?" Yuna wondered. "I don't remember Hotaru playing him…"

"Because she didn't." Kazumi pointed out. "That must have been the card that she discarded, back when she used that Action Spell Angel Baton."

"But that's a… Tuner Monster?" Reiko interjected. "When did Hotaru ever have a Tuner?! And why wouldn't she play that sooner? That would have been really useful before!"

"And since that was just a Special Summon, I Normal Summon Night Wing Sorceress." Accompanying the hooded magician was a pale young woman in an ebon dress, soaring across the field on raven wings (LV 3 DEF: 1200)

For so long," Hotaru sighed. "I was afraid of using this monster, and the card that it's tied to. It was my best card; my favorite card, and it won me duel after duel! But after I learned about the pain that it'd caused, I wanted to never play it again. I wanted to get rid of it; throw it away, leave it behind, tear it up… but I couldn't."

She stared at Arcane Apprentice, and reflected upon the innumerable victories she had achieved with it. "I held onto this monster, and the cards associated with it, to remind me of my old shame… so that I would never walk down that road again. But now, I'm going to give them new meaning!"

Celeste smiled as she watched Hotaru. She knew perfectly well that her defeat was inevitable, but she barely cared; she was proud to have dueled Hotaru on equal terms, as friends.

"I tune my Level 3 Arcane Apprentice with my Level 4 Breaker the Magic Warrior!" Arcane Apprentice waved its wand in a circle three times, before vanishing into three green rings, which encircled Breaker.

"When magic of the Arcane is imbued with the warrior's valor, the true master of sorcery will reveal itself! Synchro Summon! Come forth! Level 7 Arcanite Magician!" From the beam of light emerged a magnificent sorcerer with a hooded white and dark blue cloak over what appeared to be dark armor, a staff imbued with a glowing green orb in its hand, poised for battle (ATK: 400).

"Whoa! I didn't know that Hotaru could Synchro Summon!" Yuna marveled.

"Looks really cool and all…" Reiko muttered sheepishly. "But, I was kinda expecting more than just 400 ATK…"

"When it's Synchro Summoned, Arcanite Magician gains 2 Spell Counters, and it gains 1000 ATK for every Counter it has. (Arcanite Magician SpC: 2 ATK: 400 – 2400) And now, because of Arcane Apprentice's effect, I'm allowed to pull a certain card from my deck to my hand, which I'm going to place face-down."

"I activate Arcanite's effect: By removing Spell Counters from anywhere on my field, I can destroy any card you control. So, I remove a Spell Counter from Defender the Magical Knight, and the last Counter from Pitch Black Power Stone, to destroy your Junk Warrior and Scrap Iron Scarecrow!"

Arcanite Magician raised its staff, pulling power from Defender and the stone, which shattered upon having its final Counter extracted, and the cards on Celeste's field were obliterated in a single stroke.

"Now, Arcanite Magician! Attack Celeste directly! Arcane Flash!"

"I don't think so!" Celeste interjected. "I pay 4 Speed Counters to activate the Action Card Sakuretsu Counterstrike! (Celeste SC: 7 – 3) If you've destroyed a monster on my field this turn, I can negate your monster's attack and destroy it!" Hotaru grinned, not willing to give up just yet.

"I use my trap card: Assault Mode Activate!"

"You can't activate a Trap the same turn that you set it…." Celeste corrected.

"In this case, I can." Hotaru clarified. "Because of my Night Wing Sorceress, I can use Assault Mode Activate on the same turn it was set! Ascend! Level 9 Arcanite Magician /Assault Mode!" Arcanite Magician was engulfed in bright white light, which burned away its cloak, to reveal a suit of dark blue and orange armor coated in glowing green gems underneath. (SpC: 2 ATK: 900 – 2900)

"Finish this duel! Arcane Assault Blast!"

Celeste remembered her last duel as a Topsider: the duel against Hotaru that had changed her life forever. She had taken powerful hit after hit from her aggressive beatdown tactics, and yet with every hit, she saw a little bit of hope to recover. However, when she used Assault Mode Activate, any hope was quickly destroyed along with her remaining life points.

Now, however, Celeste looked upon Arcanite Magician as if it were an old friend, happy that she no longer needed to be afraid of it.

(Celeste: 2300 – 0)

 **Winner: Hotaru**

With the duel concluded, Celeste's D-Wheel came to a complete stop. Hotaru, not far behind her, came to a stop next to her, and pulled off her helmet. She dismounted her D-Wheel, and stood expectedly, waiting for Celeste's verdict.

The Prince got off her bike, and she took off her helmet, holding it under her arm as she slowly walked up to Hotaru, and shook her hand.

"C'est Super, Hotaru." She said proudly. She got down onto one knee, and planted an affectionate kiss on the back of Hotaru's hand. "I am proud to have dueled you at last, and I would be even more proud to see you be GDS's representative." Hundreds of girls in the audience squealed and cheered at the Prince's endorsement.

"Uh, th-there's no need for… theatrics, is there?" Hotaru said sheepishly.

"A Riding Duel brings duelists together like no other," said Celeste as she stood up. "Even without our verbal exchange, we've connected in a way that only we can."

If Hotaru hadn't already turned red in the face by Celeste's theatrics, it certainly was now; she understood fully what The Prince was trying to say, but it was hard for her to think of a situation where 'connecting in a way only we can' could be taken in an innocent context.

"Come see me tomorrow, and we can discuss your next test." Celeste instructed. "Until then," She kissed Hotaru lightly on each cheek. "Au revoir!"

"Ah! Hey, wait!" Hotaru called, suddenly remembering something. "I forgot to give your umbrella back...!"

But just as she spoke, Celeste had already revved up her D-Wheel, and her fans squealed in loving admiration from the stands, as she drove back to the garage.

* * *

Later that day, as they sat in study hall, Yuna and Reiko had questions for Hotaru, now that they knew her real background.

"So…. Topsider, huh?" Reiko said. "That means you're a super-rich girl, isn't that right?"

"Well… I was." Hotaru shrugged. "I ran away from home, with nothing but my deck and the clothes on my back."

"I would have stolen my family's riches first; have something to run away with." Reiko teased.

"Gee, never thought of that." Hotaru grumbled sarcastically.

"How did you make it to this dimension?" asked Yuna. "…Actually, how did you even know about the multiple dimensions? Because I had no idea, until you told me."

"…That," Hotaru sighed. "Is a long, and complicated story. I'll tell you another time, but…. You two heard about what I'd done in my old life, didn't you?" Yuna and Reiko nodded. "And… you still want me to be your friend, even knowing the awful things that I'd done?"

"Of course." Yuna smiled. "I told you earlier: it doesn't matter where you were from, or what you used to be."

"Yeah!" Reiko nodded. "Because right now, what you are…."

"Is our friend!" Yuna and Reiko said together, hugging Hotaru from either side, much to her embarrassment.

"Ahem!" Asuka cleared her throat loudly as she stood directly over the three. "As much as I enjoy your cute bonding moment… you're making too much noise."

Sure enough, everyone else in the room by that point had eyes on the them, many giggling and snickering at them.

"Sorry, Mrs. Yuki." All three girls said together.

 **To Be Continued….**

* * *

 **Oh, man, this was another one that took so much longer to do than I wanted. And, just like ch5, it's gone through lots of changes.**

 **In particular, it was going to be the start of Yuna's second test, or at least showing who her next opponent would be, but then I realized that, since I'd shown Yuna quite a bit, and featured Hotaru in the last chapter, I was due to have something for Hotaru, so… here we are! ^^**

 **Additionally, I've been looking to write a "rainy day" chapter for quite a while now, and the first part of this chapter was created with that story idea in mind. I've made another attempt at a "rainy day" chapter, which ended up spinning off into a whole different story altogether (Keep an eye out for a new series called "After Dark" ;P).**

 **Celeste was a joy to write; from the beginning, I've always wanted to include the "Prince" bifauxnen type character in this story, inspired by Amane from Strawberry Panic, and I saw no better opportunity than with the Synchro Star. As you might have guessed, I created her to be kind of a mix of Yusei Fudo and Sherry LeBlanc; in fact, I've even mused about the idea of her personally knowing Arc-V's incarnation of Sherry, hence her tendency of using French words.**

 **Speaking of Hotaru and Celeste, their duel also got cut down quite a bit, because it'd ballooned way out of control XD! I had it running a bit longer, so as to show off more of the Synchro monsters in both players' decks, particularly Celeste's "Yusei Deck" (I'd even rewatched all of 5Ds Season 1 for this occasion), and having the duel end with a clash between Hotaru's Arcanite Magician/Assault Mode, and Celeste's Stardust Warrior!**

 **Speaking of which, even though it's an archetype that really does not work as well as it wants to in the real game, I have to admit, I'm kind of a sucker for the "Assault Mode" monsters, and their concept of transforming already powerful Synchro monsters into extra beefed-up Effect Monsters. So, I decided to have them be a part of Hotaru's deck; with whom I'm looking to expand upon the Assault Mode concept.**

 **Hotaru's concept, having once been a Topsider in the Synchro Dimension, is something I've been itching to dig into ever since my first attempt at this series back in 2015, and so it was super satisfying to finally be able to break it in!**

 **Lastly, I wanted to talk for a moment about Yurihime: even though she only got a minor part here, I have big plans for her in another series that I'm hoping will see the light of day soon: Without going into too much detail, a friend of mine, Azure Dragon of the East, is working on creating a college hentai series taking place 1 year later after this Season, where Yurihime will be among the main cast.**

 **Next time… Well, honestly, I don't really know what exactly the next chapter will bring. Maybe that rainy day chapter? Either way, since there have been 3 duel chapters in a row now, I think next chapter will relax, and have a bit more yuri fun.**

 **See you then!**


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